Department for Transport

Public Transport: North East

Mr Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that public transport (a) infrastructure and (b) vehicles in the North East are accessible to people with disabilities.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The Government wants to ensure that transport in all parts of the country is fully accessible to disabled people. The Department for Transport will publish an Inclusive Transport Strategy setting out how we will achieve this later this year. The Strategy will set out our key policy and investment priorities for improving disabled people’s access to all modes of transport. It will also confirm our timeframes and proposals for monitoring delivery. The Strategy follows a consultation in 2017 on a draft Accessibility Action Plan, which received over 1,000 responses. The Strategy will build on significant accessibility improvements made nationwide in recent years, including: 98% of buses in England in 2016/17 were compliant with the Public Service Vehicle Accessibility Regulations, up from 28% in 2004/05; 78% of the mainline rail fleet is compliant with modern accessibility standards, up from 42% in 2008. Furthermore, new fleets of trains are being introduced as part of the franchises for the North (Northern and Trans Pennine Express) which will meet modern accessibility standards and existing fleets are undergoing refurbishment ahead of the mandatory 2020 vehicle accessibility compliance end date; Since 2006, more than 200 stations have had accessible step free routes installed under Access for All. This is in addition to access improvements delivered by the industry or as part of other major projects. 75% of rail journeys are now through step-free stations, up from only 50% in 2005.

Railways: Death

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many people have been killed on railway lines in each of the last five years.

Joseph Johnson: Official statistics relating to the number of fatalities on the mainline, London Underground and other light rail networks in Great Britain are published by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) on their website at: https://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/browsereports/5 These tables accompany an annual ORR statistical release. The latest publication (for 2016-17) can be found at the following address: http://orr.gov.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0017/25622/rail-safety-statistics-2016-17.pdf

Severn Tunnel: Closures

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 29 June 2018 to Question 155763, on Severn Tunnel: Closures, what estimate his Department has made of the costs of the engineering work during the temporary closure of the Severn Tunnel in 2018.

Joseph Johnson: The costs of engineering work during the temporary closure of the Severn Tunnel are factored into the overall programme costs. We are investing over £5bn in the Great Western route to deliver faster, more reliable services and new trains with thousands more seats.

A14: Kettering

Mr Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on the number of vehicles which use the A14 between junctions 7 and 9 around Kettering each day; what the average speed is of those vehicles along that stretch of the A14; and what proportion of those vehicles are HGVs.

Jesse Norman: The number of vehicles using the A14 between junctions 7 and 9 each day, their speed and the proportion of which HGVs are set out in the table below. Table showing data for the period 1 July 2017 to 30 June 2018: LocationNumber of vehicles each day (note 1)Average speed in miles per hour (note 2)Proportion of HGVsA14 westbound between J9 and J835,1366317%A14 eastbound between J8 and J936,8646416%A14 westbound between J8 and J739,93662N/AA14 eastbound between J7 and J835,42465N/A The number of vehicles each day is the Annual Average Daily Traffic flow.The average speed is for a typical mid-week (Wednesday).  The HGV proportion data is not available between junctions 7 and 8 in both directions for the period 1 July 2017 to 30 June 2018. However, the HGV proportion for 1 January 2017 to 31 December 2017 is 26 per cent between junctions 7 and 8 and 24 per cent between junctions 8 and 7.

Railway Stations: Coventry

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with representatives of Virgin Trains on trends in the number of delayed services affecting Coventry train station.

Joseph Johnson: Performance of Virgin Trains services is regularly reviewed at each franchise review meeting. The most recent four week period reviewed saw 91% of Euston -West Midlands services arriving within 10 minutes of right time, and 85% in respect of the one train per hour serving Euston - Coventry which starts or terminates in Scotland. The recent hot weather has had an impact on performance which has been experienced across the West Coast Mainline and the Department will be continue to monitor performance with Virgin Trains.

Airports: National Policy Statements

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, on what dates the cross-government steering group considering the development of the Airports National Policy Statement and accompanying Appraisal of Sustainability met since June 2017; and if he will list the job titles of the members of that steering group.

Jesse Norman: Since June 2017, there have been four meetings of the steering group that meets to discuss the National Policy Statement and Appraisal of Sustainability on the following dates: 4 September 2017, 14 September 2017, 10 April 2018 and 30 May 2018. The membership of the steering group is cross-Government. There is no fixed invitee or attendee list; representatives from the following Departments, Offices and Agencies are invited to send representatives to attend meetings: Department for Transport, Cabinet Office, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, HM Treasury, Scotland Office, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Home Office, Northern Ireland Office, Wales Office, Department for Education and Public Health England. Attendees will often vary depending on the agenda to be discussed.

Airports: National Policy Statements

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, on what dates special advisers of his Department (a) met and (b) exchanged corresponded with (i) Ministers, (ii) special advisers and (iii) officials of HM Treasury from June 2017 in relation to the Airports National Policy Statement and accompanying documents and analysis.

Jesse Norman: Special advisers may engage with Government colleagues on a wide range of issues from time to time, and act in accordance with the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers. More broadly, I would note that all Departmental representatives involved in any discussions prior to the designation of the Airports National Policy Statement will have followed the propriety arrangements set out in Engaging with Stakeholders: Statement of Approach by Ministers and Officials dealing with the revised draft Airports National Policy Statement, which is published online: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/653867/engaging-with-stakeholders-statement-of-approach-revised-draft-airports-nps.pdf

Airports: National Policy Statements

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, on what date officials of his Department gave their final advice to Ministers of his Department on Public Service Obligations in relation to the (a) draft-original, (b) draft-revised and (c) final Airports National Policy Statement; and from which directorate that advice was received.

Jesse Norman: The Secretary of State has set out a clear commitment that Public Service Obligations would be imposed, if required, to boost and retain connectivity from an expanded Heathrow Airport. This will complement the requirements in the Airports National Policy Statement for Heathrow to work with airlines to strengthen existing routes and introduce new connections. As per the usual process, final advice was provided to the Secretary of State, and was subject to cross Whitehall agreement, ahead of the (a) draft Airport National Policy Statement; (b) revised draft Airports National Policy Statement; and (c) proposed Airports National Policy Statement being laid before Parliament. This advice was provided on the following dates: (a) 15 December 2016; (b) 20 October 2017 and (c) 22 May 2018. The Airport Expansion and Aviation, Maritime and Analysis Directorate and the Aviation Directorate respectively provide regular advice, as appropriate, to Ministers on domestic connectivity, including on Public Service Obligations. The future use of Public Service Obligations and Government’s ambition on domestic connectivity more generally will be detailed in the Aviation Strategy Green Paper towards the end of the year.

Airports: National Policy Statements

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish the titles of the risk registers in relation to the (a) Airport Capacity Programme Board and (b) cross-government steering group on the development of the Airports National Policy Statement and the accompanying Appraisal of Sustainability; and the dates on which those risk register have been updated.

Jesse Norman: The Airport Expansion & Aviation and Maritime Analysis Risk Register is updated and circulated to Airport Capacity Programme Board (ACPB) members monthly, in advance of each meeting. There are 43 Airport Capacity Programme Board ‘risk register’ documents with titles constructed from the date of the meeting, the relevant paper number or the version number of the risk register. The cross-Government steering group that meets to discuss the Airports National Policy Statement and Appraisal of Sustainability does not maintain a risk register.The title of each risk register up to June 2018 is provided below:140312 ACaP 1.7 Risk Register140513 ACaP 2.6 risk register141001 4.7 ACaP board risk register141119 5.6 Acap Board Risk Register141215 6.7 December Risk Register150127 – 7.6 Risk Register150312 8.7 ACPB risk register 150414 9.6 ACPB risk register150429 17. ACPB stocktake risk register150520 11.7 ACPB risk register150625 12.6 ACAP 25_06_15 risk register150810 – 13.6 Risk Register for ACPB 12 Aug151007 – 15.10 Risk Register for October ACPB151103 – 16.11 Risk Register for November ACPB151203 ACPB Risk Register Report_Aviation Dec160107 – 18.8 ACPB Risk Register Report January 2016160222 – 19.9 Risk Register Report ACPB160311 – 20.6 Post Deep Dives ACP Risk Register Report for ACPB160408 – 21.7 160408 Risk Register for April ACPB160511 – 22.12 ACP Risk Register Report for ACPB May 19160615 – 24.10 ACAP Risk Register June160713 – 25.5 ACAP Risk Register for ACPB July160913 – 27.9 Risk Register Report Sep161011 – Risk Register Report Oct - Final161109 – Paper 29.4 Risk Register Report November170116 – Paper 31.6 Risk Register Report – Jan 2017170220 – Paper 32.7 ACPB Risk Register Report170310 – Paper 33.6 ACPB Risk Register – March 2017170412 – Paper 34.9 ACP Risk Register – April 2017170510 – Paper 35.6 ACPB Risk Register – May 2017170612 – Paper 36.7 Airport Capacity Risk Register for ACPB – June 2017170704 – Paper 37.4 ACP Risk Register Report – July 2017 v4170807 – Paper 38.6 ACP Risk Register Report – August 2017 ACPB version170911 – Paper 39.4 Airport Expansion Risk Register Report – Sept 2017_ACPB171010 – Paper 40.4 Risk Register Report – Oct 2017 - ACPB171109 – Paper 41.4 ACPB Risk Register171207 – Paper 42.4 AEAMA Risk Register Report180110 – Paper 43.5 AEAMA Risk Register Report – Jan 2018180213 - Paper 44.4 AEAMA Risk Register Report - Feb 2018180307 - Paper 45.4 AEAMA Risk Register Report - March 2018_v6ACPB180409 - AEAMA Risk Register Report - April 2018_v5ACPB180504 – Item 2. paper 47.3 Risk Register – May 2018 – ACPB v1180613 - AEAMA Risk Register Report - June 2018_v5 ACPB

Southeastern

Sir David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations he has received in the last month on the service of Southeastern Railway.

Joseph Johnson: The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Road Traffic Offences

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to introduce a penalty for (a) failing to stop for and (b) report hitting a domestic cat under the Road Traffic Act 1988.

Jesse Norman: The Government has no current plans to amend legislation on reporting animal accidents or deaths on the road. However, the police do advise drivers that, if possible, they should make enquiries to ascertain the owner of domestic animals such as cats, and inform them of the situation. In addition, Rule 286 of The Highway Code also advises drivers to report any accident involving an animal to the police.

Bicycles: Safety Measures

Dr Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will conduct a public consultation on the (a) advantages and (b) disadvantages of making compulsory the equipping of bicycles with an effective auditory warning device whenever ridden on public roads or paths.

Dr Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the reasons were for the policy decisions that led to it being illegal for a new bicycle to be sold without an auditory warning device but not illegal for the purchaser of a new bicycle to remove such a device after purchase.

Dr Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of (a) bells and (b) alternative auditory warning devices on bicycles as an aid to the avoidance of collisions with pedestrians.

Dr Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reason his Department has decided that it would be too difficult to enforce a requirement, if enacted, for all bicycles to have an effective auditory warning device fitted, whenever ridden, when it has decided that it is not too difficult to enforce the current requirement that all bicycles must have lights, in working order, fitted whenever ridden at night.

Dr Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has received representations from or on behalf of (a) partially sighted pedestrians and (b) other pedestrians on requirements for bicycles to be fitted with effective auditory warning devices whenever ridden on public roads or paths; and if he will make a statement.

Jesse Norman: The Pedal Bicycles (Safety) Regulations 2010 require a bell to be fitted to an assembled bicycle at the point of sale, but there is currently no legal requirement for bicycles to be fitted with bells when in use on public roads or paths. Rule 66 of the Highway Code recommends that a bell should be fitted to all bicycles, and advises cyclists to be considerate of other road users, particularly blind and partially sighted pedestrians, and to use the bell where appropriate to signal to others that they are nearby. The Department has received representations from various stakeholders on this matter as part of the recent wide-ranging Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy Safety Review call for evidence. Some respondents have suggested changing the current legislation to require all bikes to be fitted with bells when in use. The Department is currently analysing the 13,000 or so responses to the call for evidence, and will announce next steps later this year. In considering the case for any change to the current legislation on bike bells, the Department will consider matters such as how effectively any new requirement could be enforced. The Pedal Bicycles (Safety) Regulations 2010 are primarily designed to ensure consumer protection at the point of sale, and they do not cover the use of bicycles. They were introduced following a consultation in 2009.

Bus Services: Community Transport

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the cost to charities running not-for-profit community minibus services of the proposed new guidance requiring advanced driving licence qualifications.

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what risk assessment has been conducted on the proposed new guidance for drivers of not-for-profit community bus services.

Jesse Norman: The Government published its consultation on the use of section 19 and section 22 permits for road passenger transport in Great Britain on 8th February 2018. The consultation focused on ensuring domestic legislation and guidance is aligned with EU Regulation 1071/2009 on road transport operators. An impact assessment was published alongside the consultation. To help build a stronger evidence base in relation to the potential impacts of the proposals, the consultation requested information from those providing community transport services as to how they operate.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Energy: Meters

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the timetable is for SMETS2 meters to be made available for pre-payment consumers.

Claire Perry: Energy suppliers are currently testing their SMETS2 pre-payment metering solutions. When these are made available to their customers is a matter for individual energy suppliers.

Energy: Meters

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of removing gas meter installations from the smart meters implementation programme; and the effect of the removal of those installations on dual fuel energy tariffs.

Claire Perry: We have made no such assessment as there is a compelling case for including gas meters in the roll-out of smart meters across Great Britain as set out in our latest Cost Benefit Analysis.

Manufacturing Industries: Employment

Mr Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to support manufacturing jobs in North East England.

Richard Harrington: The Government’s Industrial Strategy has set out a long term approach to boost the UK’s productivity growth and ensure that we’re building an economy fit for the future. The White Paper has set out a range of measures aimed at increasing investment from the private and public sector, which will both be vital in meeting the objective of increasing our productivity and earning power for people across the UK. This includes a commitment to increase total R&D investment to 2.4% of GDP by 2027. We are committed to making the UK the best place in Europe to own and grow a manufacturing business. Through our Industrial Strategy, we will make sure that we are using all the tools we have to stimulate growth in places such as the North East. That means using our record investments in infrastructure to unlock growth in every part of the country; using the major new investment in research to support innovative manufacturing businesses across the country; and encouraging inward investment into the parts of the country where we need to get growth going faster. We are also cutting business taxes and slashing red tape. Government is supporting the North East LEP Growth Deal by providing £380 million of funding that will lead to an estimated 8,000 new jobs. The Growth Deal includes funding for the International Advanced Manufacturing Park (IAMP) providing a world-class environment for high-tech industries and advanced manufacturing businesses.

Manufacturing Industries: North East

Mr Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to support manufacturing jobs in North East England in his negotiations with the EU for when the UK leaves the EU.

Richard Harrington: As we leave the EU there is an opportunity for us to do far more to engage with the wider world beyond Europe where there is so much emerging innovation and opportunity. The Industrial Strategy builds on our strengths, creates strong foundations to meet the challenges of the future and will help us to make the best of our relations with Europe and beyond. This helps ensure that minimal disruptions are made to UK manufacturing and facilitates conditions for it to thrive. We recognise the challenges faced by EU Exit, and we remain committed to making the UK the best place in Europe to own and grow a business after the UK leaves the EU. Through our Industrial Strategy, we will make sure that we are using all the tools we have to stimulate growth in places such as the North East. This includes using our record investments in infrastructure to unlock growth in every part of the country; using the major new investment in research to support innovative manufacturing businesses across the country; and encouraging inward investment into the parts of the country where we need to get growth going faster. We are also cutting business taxes and slashing red tape. Government is also supporting the North East LEP Growth Deal by providing £380 million of funding that will lead to an estimated 8,000 new jobs. The Growth Deal includes funding for the International Advanced Manufacturing Park, providing a world-class environment for high-tech industries and advanced manufacturing businesses.

Energy: Housing

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many feed-in tariff applications have been made in respect of houses with an Energy Performance Certificate of (a) D or higher and (b) E or lower in the most recent 12 months for which data are available.

Claire Perry: In the period June 2017 to June 2018, 13,428 applications for the Feed-in-Tariff scheme were made in respect of premises where Ofgem know that it had an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) of level D or above. Ofgem does not hold data in relation to premises with FIT installations which have an EPC of level E or below

Solar Power: Housing

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the feed-in tariff rate for solar PV is for (a) houses with Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) of D or higher and (b) houses with EPCs of E or lower.

Claire Perry: The Feed-In Tariff rates are published by Ofgem at https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-programmes/fit/fit-tariff-rates. The current higher PV tariff of 3.93p per kWh is available for houses with EPCs of D or higher. The lower tariff of 0.25p per kWh is available for houses with EPCs of E or lower and those houses with an EPC of level D or above that was not issued before the commissioning date of the installation.

Wind Power: Seas and Oceans

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what his policy is on support for the UK offshore wind industry’s ambition to produce one third of UK electricity from offshore wind by 2030; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry: The UK has the largest installed offshore wind capacity in the world, with around 7GW operational. This will rise to around 10GW by 2020. As set out in the Clean Growth Strategy, the Government is working with industry as they develop an ambitious Sector Deal for offshore wind, which could result in 10 gigawatts of new capacity, with the opportunity for additional deployment if this is cost effective, built in the 2020s.

Wind Power: Seas and Oceans

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent assessment he has made of the potential for offshore wind to deliver significant electricity system cost reductions by 2030.

Claire Perry: Offshore wind costs have fallen significantly over the last few years. The cheapest offshore wind projects in the 2017 Contract for Difference Allocation Round cleared 50% lower than the cheapest offshore wind project in the 2015 Contract for Difference Allocation Round. Going forward, the industry expects offshore wind costs to continue to fall.

Carbon Budgets

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the Climate Change Act 2008, what assessment he has made of the potential performance of the UK in relation to the (i) third, (ii) fourth and (iii) fifth carbon budget.

Claire Perry: The UK is projected to overachieve against the third carbon budget. Current projections for the fourth and fifth carbon budgets suggest that we could deliver 97 per cent and 95 per cent of our required performance against 1990 levels, and we are working to implement the ambitious policies and proposals set out in our Clean Growth Strategy to enable us to meet our future carbon budgets.

Fracking: Carbon Budgets

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of fracking on the UK meeting the targets of the (a) fourth carbon budget for 2023-2027 and (b) fifth carbon budget for 2028-2032.

Claire Perry: Our approach to meeting the fourth and fifth Carbon Budgets is set out in the Clean Growth Strategy. Continued use of natural gas from offshore and onshore sources is compatible with meeting our carbon budgets, and innovations in technologies such as Carbon Capture Usage and Storage have the potential to decarbonise this energy supply still further.

Trade

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the recommendations of the report, Global Market Power and its Macroeconomic Implications, published by the IMF on 15 June, 2018;  and whether he has plans to refer that report to the Competition and Markets Authority for review.

Andrew Griffiths: The research paper ‘Global Market Power and its Macroeconomic Implications’ is an IMF working paper. While the paper provides detailed analysis and reaches a number of conclusions, it makes no recommendations to national governments. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the UK’s independent competition authority, is aware of the paper.

Climate Change Convention

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 21 June 2018 to Question 153707, on Climate Change Convention, whether his Department plans to make public the terms of reference for the advice sought from the Committee on Climate Change.

Claire Perry: The Government will be seeking advice from the Committee on Climate Change on the implications of the Paris Agreement for the UK’s long-term reduction targets after the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s report later this year. The content of that request for advice will be made public.

Coal

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the demand for coal was in each year since 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry: The table below gives the demand for coal from 2010 - 2017: UK coal demand (thousand tonnes) (1)201051,324201151,507201264,042201360,206201448,295201537,451201617,745201714,183 (1) Includes coal used for electricity generation, heat generation, coke manufacture, blast furnaces, patent fuel manufacture, energy used in coal extraction and final consumption by industry, transport, domestic and other users. Source: Energy Trends table 2.1 June 2018 available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/solid-fuels-and-derived-gases-section-2-energy-trends

Coal

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the demand for coal has been excluding electricity generation in each year since 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry: The table below gives the demand for coal excluding electricity generation from 2010 - 2017: UK coal demand (thousand tonnes) (1)20109,82720119,65820129,141201310,333201410,06120158,12120165,68920175,459 (1) Includes coal used for heat generation, coke manufacture, blast furnaces, patent fuel manufacture, energy used in coal extraction and final consumption by industry, transport, domestic and other users. Source: Energy Trends table 2.1 June 2018 available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/solid-fuels-and-derived-gases-section-2-energy-trends

Fire Prevention: Insulation

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 28 June 2018 to Question 156340, if he will place a copy in the Library of the proposal by the Manufacturing Technology Centre to InnovateUK, his Department and the Department for Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Richard Harrington: The Government intends to place a copy of the proposal in the Libraries of the House at the same time as the report on the outcomes of the project is published.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Yemen: Armed Conflict

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the military situation in Hudaydah Yemen.

Alistair Burt: On 13 June, Coalition and Government of Yemen forces launched an operation to recapture Hodeidah from the Houthi militia. A pause in military operations has since been announced to allow for the UN Special Envoy to bring forward his proposals for a political settlement over Hodeidah. We continue to support the Special Envoy in facilitating a credible peace process in Yemen.

USA: State Visits

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which locations President Trump will be visiting as part of his state visit.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

USA: State Visits

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which (a) Ministers and (b) Parliamentarians are planned to have meetings with President Trump during the forthcoming visit to the UK.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Afghanistan: Sikhs

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Afghanistan Government on the protection of Afghan Sikhs.

Mark Field: ​The British Government condemned the 1 July attack on a group of Sikhs and Hindus in Jalalabad. On Twitter I described it as "a despicable attack on Afghanistan's historic Sikh and Hindu community". The UK regularly raises human rights issues with the Government of Afghanistan, including the need to protect the rights of all ethnic and religious groups in line with the constitution. As part of NATO's Resolute Support Mission, the UK supports the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces in its efforts to improve security for all communities in Afghanistan.

Nabeel Rajab

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the significance of the recent European Parliament statement on the sentencing of the Bahraini human rights defender, Mr Nabeel Rajab.

Alistair Burt: Holding answer received on 09 July 2018



The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is aware of the resolution of the European Parliament of 14 June.I expressed my concerns on the sentence given to Mr Rajab in my written statement of 21 February. I also reiterated the UK's call for Bahrain to protect freedom of expression for all its citizens, in line with their international obligations.The British Embassy in Bahrain has closely monitored the trials of Mr Rajab. Officials from the Embassy regularly attend Mr Rajab's court hearings, including the handing down of the latest appeal verdict. We have raised this case at senior levels. I am aware that there is now an opportunity for Mr Rajab's legal team to apply for an appeal through the judicial system. Our officials will continue to monitor the case closely.

USA: State Visits

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will ask the US Government to cover the cost to Thames Valley Police of policing any visit to Oxfordshire by the US President during his upcoming visit to the UK.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Department of Health and Social Care

Cannabis: Medical Treatments

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions his Department has had with representatives of the medicinal cannabis industry on the medicinal and therapeutic benefits of (a) cannabis and (b) cannabis-based medicinal products.

Steve Brine: On 13 June 2018 the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Health (Lord O’Shaughnessy) and officials had an introductory meeting with GW Pharmaceuticals, which develops licensed medicines containing ingredients derived from cannabis, during which the benefits of that company’s medicines were discussed. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency is responsible for the regulation of medicines in the United Kingdom and has provided advice and guidance, on request, to companies developing cannabis-based medicinal products, to support specific medical indications in relation to potential future marketing authorisation applications for new medicines.

Disability: Children

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of trends in waiting times for disabled children to access health and social care services in each of the last five years.

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of funding available to provide (a) equipment and (b) treatment for disabled children.

Caroline Dinenage: The commissioning of health and social care services is the responsibility of clinical commissioning groups and local authorities respectively. Local commissioners are best placed to assess the needs of the local population, and commission accordingly. While waiting times for accessing some individual services for children are reported, there is no overall waiting time measure for access to services for disabled children. Information is collected on wheelchair services; the latest published data for quarter four 2017/18 shows 82% of children whose episode of care was closed in that period received their equipment in 18 weeks or less. NHS England is working with clinical commissioning groups to understand what is contributing to waits above 18 weeks, and consider what actions will help to reduce these. In 2014, the Government introduced a new statutory framework requiring local authorities and clinical commissioning groups to jointly commission services for children with special educational needs and disability, across health, social care and education. Since 2014, £327 million has been given to local areas to support implementation of these new arrangements. This is in addition to the high needs budget for placements for pupils with complex special educational needs which is £6 billion this year – the highest it has ever been. Every local area’s arrangements are being inspected jointly by Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission, in addition to their role inspecting providers. The 2015 Spending Review made available more than £200 billion until 2020 for councils to deliver services to local communities, including for provision of social care services for disabled children. The Government is conducting a review of the relative needs and resources of local authorities that will develop a robust, up-to-date approach to distributing funding across all local authorities in England at Local Government Finance Settlements, including for children’s services.

Antibiotics: Drug Resistance

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of the expanded use of diagnostic techniques to tackle antimicrobial resistance.

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will commission research into the expanded use of diagnostic techniques to tackle antimicrobial resistance.

Steve Brine: The Government’s Five Year Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Strategy 2013-18 recognised the importance of making better use of existing and new rapid diagnostics to optimise the use of antimicrobials. NHS England leads a programme of work to ensure that we have patient focused diagnostics that support clinical decision making and delivery of the Government’s ambitions on AMR. A new United Kingdom AMR diagnostic collaborative, led by NHS England, aims to provide clarity about which tests should be undertaken and in which setting. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is developing a series of short syndrome-specific clinical guidelines to support clinicians to diagnose and treat common infections utilising the latest data and evidence. In the last five years the UK has seen unprecedented research collaboration and investment aimed at tackling AMR nationally and internationally; diagnostics continue to be a priority theme for research.

Disability: Children

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the quality of health and social care services for disabled children.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of trends in waiting times for disabled children to access health and social care services in each of the last five years.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of funding for the provision of (a) equipment and (b) treatment for disabled children.

Caroline Dinenage: The commissioning of health and social care services is the responsibility of clinical commissioning groups and local authorities respectively. Local commissioners are best placed to assess the needs of the local population, and commission accordingly. While waiting times for accessing some individual services for children are reported, there is no overall waiting time measure for access to services for disabled children. Information is collected on wheelchair services; the latest published data for quarter four 2017/18 shows 82% of children whose episode of care was closed in that period received their equipment in 18 weeks or less. NHS England is working with clinical commissioning groups to understand what is contributing to waits above 18 weeks, and consider what actions will help to reduce these. In 2014, the Government introduced a new statutory framework requiring local authorities and clinical commissioning groups to jointly commission services for children with special educational needs and disability, across health, social care and education. Since 2014, £327 million has been given to local areas to support implementation of these new arrangements, in addition to the high needs budget for placements for pupils with complex special educational needs which is £6 billion this year – the highest it has ever been. Every local area’s arrangements are being inspected jointly by Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission, in addition to their role inspecting providers. The 2015 Spending Review made available more than £200 billion until 2020 for councils to deliver services to local communities, including for provision of social care services for disabled children. The Government is conducting a review of the relative needs and resources of local authorities that will develop a robust, up-to-date approach to distributing funding across all local authorities in England at Local Government Finance Settlements, including for children’s services.

Geriatrics

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to promote geriatric medicine to doctors as a career specialism.

Stephen Barclay: Health Education England (HEE) is working to support recruitment into all specialties, including geriatric medicine. HEE works closely with the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) on recruitment and retention in geriatric medicine, for example by nominating a lead postgraduate dean to support the RCP’s specialist advisory committee’s work on training in geriatric medicine.In the longer term, the expansion of undergraduate medical school places by 1,500 which will be rolled out from September 2018 until September 2020 will also help to increase the supply of doctors to the National Health Service.

Doctors: West Midlands

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has plans to increase the number of medical school places to meet patient demand in the West Midlands.

Stephen Barclay: We are making available 1,500 additional medical school places in England, 630 of which will be available this September.Following an initial allocation of 500 additional places to existing medical schools, and a competitive bidding and allocation process for the remaining 1,000 places run by Health Education England and the Higher Education Funding Council for England (now the Office for Students), a total of 177 additional medical school places have been allocated to medical schools in the West Midlands.A breakdown of the places allocated in the West Midlands is provided in the following table and full details can be found at the following link:https://hee.nhs.uk/news-blogs-events/news/new-medical-schools-open-train-doctors-future  University/medical schoolTotal additional allocation from expansion2018-192019-202020-21Keele University351520-University of Warwick1616--Aston University1002080-University of Birmingham2626--

Doctors: West Midlands

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the UK leaving the EU on the adequacy of the number of physicians in the West Midlands.

Stephen Barclay: The Department continues to monitor and analyse overall staffing levels in the National Health Service and adult social care across the West Midlands, as it does the whole of England. We are working across Government to ensure there will continue to be sufficient staff to deliver the high quality services on which patients rely following the United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union and we have been monitoring leaver and joiner rates of EU staff on a regular basis since the 2016 referendum.My Rt. hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has recently announced a 25% increase in training places for doctors, which will ensure the West Midlands can become less reliant on overseas doctors over time.On 8 December the UK and EU Commission reached an agreement which delivered on the Prime Minister’s number one priority, to safeguard the rights of people who have built their lives in the UK and EU, following the UK’s exit from the EU.The latest nationality statistics show at March 2018 4,558 more EU nationals excluding the UK (EU27) employed in NHS trusts and clinical commissioning groups than in June 2016.The agreement will guarantee the rights of the 158,000 EU nationals working in our health and care system. It means that EU citizens living lawfully in the UK and UK nationals living lawfully in the EU by 29 March 2019 will be able to stay and enjoy broadly the same rights and benefits as they do now.

Epilepsy

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the timetable is for pacemakers that detect epileptic seizures to be available on the NHS.

Steve Brine: Sometimes referred to as a pacemaker for the brain, vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) prevents seizures by sending regular, mild pulses of electrical energy to the brain via the vagus nerve. NHS England already funds VNS for refractory epilepsy within specialised neurosurgery units in England. VNS is commissioned for adults and children who meet the criteria within the published policy on the NHS England website. This can be found via the following link: www.england.nhs.uk/commissioning/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2013/08/d04-p-d.pdf The Department is aware of news reports about a new type of VNS device that allows the electrical pulses to be scheduled according to a person’s routine and seizure pattern. The device can also detect and respond to seizures. This device has recently been used for the first time at King’s College Hospital in London.

Dental Services

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that people visit a dentist every 12 months.

Steve Brine: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published guidance in 2004 which recommends that individuals are seen by a dentist at intervals set on the basis of their individual oral health. For adults the range is three months for those with the poorest oral health to 24 months for those with very good oral health. For children the range is three months to 12 months. The NICE guidance can be found at the following link:https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg19The Department supports the NICE guidance which is well established and well known to the dental profession.We are currently testing a new way of providing National Health Service dental treatment within participating high street dental practices which includes dentists being given chair side clinical guidance helping them to set recall intervals that follow the best practice set out in the NICE guidance.

Ophthalmic Services

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to encourage people to visit an optician every 12 months.

Steve Brine: The Department is taking no steps to encourage everyone to have a sight test every 12 months as this would conflict with clinical advice. Optometrists recommend that most people should get their eyes tested every two years. However, in some circumstances, they may recommend more frequent sight tests; for example, for children who already wear glasses, those with diabetes, those aged 40 or over and who have a family history of glaucoma and all those who are aged 70 and over. This information is available on NHS Choices. Opticians are expected, and do as a matter of standard practice, advise patients on the appropriate interval before their next visit based on the clinical assessment of their individual’s needs. Free National Health Service sight tests are available to people aged 60 and over, children under 16, those aged 16-18 in full-time education, people on low incomes and defined categories of people at particular risk of developing eye disease. The latest figures show that in 2016/17, 13 million sight tests were carried out which is an increase of 16,000 from previous year.

Prostate Cancer: Screening

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve testing procedures for prostate cancer.

Steve Brine: The Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) test measures the level of PSA in a man’s blood, and is currently the most common method of identifying an increased risk of localised prostate cancer. There have been efforts in recent years to develop risk prediction tools that use different blood tests (biomarkers) and other characteristics (e.g. size of the prostate, age etc) in addition to PSA to assess more accurately whether a man has clinically significant prostate cancer.The United Kingdom National Screening Committee (UK NSC) can be alerted to the publication of any new peer-reviewed evidence which suggests a change in the current recommendation, such as a new test, via the UK NSC’s early update process. Submissions are accepted throughout the year.More information on how an early update can be submitted to the UK NSC for consideration is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-nsc-evidence-review-process/uk-nsc-evidence-review-process

Mental Health Services: Birmingham

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the lead organisation is for the commissioning of residential child and adolescent mental health services in east Birmingham.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Children and adolescent mental health inpatient services in East Birmingham are commissioned by NHS England.

Depressive Illnesses: Ketamine

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care,  whether he has any plans to make ketamine available on the NHS for people with treatment-resistant depression.

Steve Brine: There are no current plans to make ketamine routinely available on the National Health Service for people with treatment-resistant depression. To be prescribed routinely within the NHS, the manufacturer of a ketamine-based medicine would need to apply for and be granted a marketing authorisation from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) for this indication. Ketamine is currently only licenced by the MHRA as an anaesthetic for diagnostic and surgical procedures in adults and children.

Aortic Aneurysm

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the interventions for patients with complex abdominal aortic aneurysms listed under the term Complex EVAR in NICE's draft guideline, Abdominal aortic aneurysm: diagnosis and management, published in May 2018; and what comparative assessment he has made of the effect on patient outcomes of (a) customised fenestrated endografts and (b) physician-modified endografts for complex abdominal aortic aneurysms.

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to NICE's May 2018 draft guidance, Abdominal aortic aneurysm: diagnosis and management, whether he plans to make an assessment of the effectiveness of the referral to treatment process for patients in receipt of screening for abdominal aortic aneurysm; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Brine: We have made no such assessment. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body responsible for developing authoritative, evidence-based guidance for the National Health Service. NICE’s guidance is based on a thorough assessment of the available evidence and is developed through extensive engagement with stakeholders. NICE has not yet published its final guideline on abdominal aortic aneurysm and has recently consulted publicly on its draft guidance. NICE will take the comments it has received in response to the consultation fully into account in finalising its guideline.

Aortic Aneurysm

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the (a) proliferation of non-authorised, physician-modified products in the treatment of abdominal aortic aneurysms and (b) effect of those products on such aneurysms.

Steve Brine: NHS England is not aware of a proliferation of physician-modified vascular devices and has not received any data that would support such a description. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body responsible for developing authoritative, evidence-based guidance for the National Health Service, and has been asked to develop a guideline on the diagnosis and management of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). NICE’s guidance is based on a thorough assessment of the available evidence and is developed through extensive engagement with stakeholders. NICE has not yet published its final guideline on AAA and has recently consulted publicly on its draft guideline. NICE has advised that its draft guideline makes no reference to ‘non-authorised’ products. NICE is considering the comments received during the consultation period and expects to publish its final recommendations to the NHS in November 2018.

Self-harm: Birmingham

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people under the age of 18 have presented at A&E in need of treatment for self-harm at hospitals in the Greater Birmingham area in each of the last five years.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the following table. Count of accident and emergency (A&E) attendances1 with an A&E patient group of self-harm, within the Birmingham area2, for patients aged between 0 and 17, 2012-13 to 2016-17.Financial yearAttendances2012-132072013-142532014-152192015-162382016-17219Source: Hospital Episode Statistics, NHS DigitalNotes:Attendances do not represent the number of patients, as a person may attend an NHS hospital on more than one occasion within the period.Data provided is based upon the clinical commissioning group (CCG) area within which the organisation providing treatment was located, and encompasses the following CCG areas:- NHS Birmingham South and Central CCG;- NHS Birmingham CrossCity CCG; and- NHS Sandwell and West Birmingham CCG.On 1 April 2018, Birmingham South and Central CCG and Birmingham Cross City CCG merged with Solihull CCG to create Birmingham and Solihull CCG. The available data pre-dates this merger.

Mental Health Services: Birmingham

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of young people's mental health services in Birmingham.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Information about performance against key mental health access and waiting times measures for clinical commissioning groups (CCG) in Birmingham is published in the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health Dashboard. The most recent information available for measures for mental health services for children and young people for Birmingham CrossCity CCG, Birmingham South Central CCG and Sandwell and West Birmingham is shown in the following table. The Dashboard gives more information on how to interpret these statistics, providing trend data as well as indicators showing what constitutes a positive measure.The Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspects both community and inpatient mental health services. Its reports and ratings provide information that helps the Department and public understand the quality of care. Its reports are published on the CQC website at the following link:https://www.cqc.org.uk/publicationsBirmingham CrossCity CCG, Birmingham South Central CCG and Sandwell and West Birmingham CCG -Data for Q1-Q2 2017/18 Indicator* - Please see the Metadata tab for further details on the indicatorsReporting periodBirmingham CrossCity CCG Indicator valueBirmingham South Central CCG Indicator valueSandwell and West Birmingham CCG Indicator valuePercentage of children and young people with eating disorders seen within one week (urgent)Q3 2016/17 - Q2 2017/1883.3%100%80.1%Percentage of children and young people with eating disorders seen within four weeks (routine)Q3 2016/17 - Q2 2017/1875.5%77.6%72.1%Number of bed days for children and young people aged under 18 in child and adolescent mental health services tier 4 wardsQ1-Q2 2017/184,0411,0261,239Number of admissions of children and young people aged under 18 in child and adolescent mental health services tier 4 wardsQ1-Q2 2017/1840710Children and young people aged mental health planned CCG spend - excluding learning disabilities and eating disorders2017/18£8.9 million£5.0 million£7.3 millionChildren and young people mental health planned CCG spend - eating disorders2017/18£1.5 million£446,000£987,000 Source: https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/mental-health-five-year-forward-view-dashboard/

Breast Cancer

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when the DNA test for breast cancer assessment will be available on the NHS.

Steve Brine: Some forms of DNA testing for cancer are available on the National Health Service. For example, the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes raise the risk of cancer if they become altered. Having a variant BRCA gene greatly increases a woman's chance of developing breast cancer and ovarian cancer. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines require that people with a 10% or higher risk of carrying BRCA genes are able to be counselled, supported and tested. However, many other DNA tests for breast cancer are still in the research phase, and are therefore not routinely available.

Menorrhagia

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department has taken to reduce variation in the level of treatment of heavy menstrual bleeding throughout the country.

Steve Brine: The level of provision of treatment for heavy menstrual bleeding, as for all health services they commission, is decided by local clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and will take into account the needs of the population overall. Decisions taken by CCGs are underpinned by clinical insight and knowledge of local healthcare needs. As such, provision of services will vary in response to local needs. CCGs have a legal duty to have regard to National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines. The NICE guidelines provide detailed guidance on examining the history of the woman, symptoms and carrying out tests. They also set out specific guidelines on management and treatment of heavy menstrual bleeding. The Evidence Based Interventions Programme announced by NHS England on 30 June 2018 aims to reduce the variation in the use of hysterectomy for heavy menstrual bleeding.

Menorrhagia

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many clinical commissioning groups have commissioned an Intrauterine system service for heavy menstrual bleeding for each of the last five financial years.

Steve Brine: Information on how many clinical commissioning groups have commissioned an intrauterine system service for heavy menstrual bleeding for each of the last five financial years, is not held centrally. It is the responsibility of each clinical commissioning group to decide which services they commission. Each decision must be based on clinical evidence, and clinical commissioning groups must ensure they meet their statutory duties when taking this decision.

Medical Equipment

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of NICE’s methodology for the appraisal of medical devices; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Brine: The Department has made no such assessment. The methodologies used by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to evaluate medical devices and diagnostics via its work programmes were developed following public consultation and subject to the approval of the NICE board. The methods and processes are reviewed periodically and any significant changes are again subject to public consultation.

Medical Equipment

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether NICE plans to undertake an assessment of the potential merits of including potential savings accrued to the social care budget in its cost benefit analysis of medical devices.

Steve Brine: In developing its guidance, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence considers the cost implications of its recommendations. Where relevant, the resource impact on social care services is considered but the cost implications are not necessarily differentiated by sector.

Ankylosing Spondylitis

Sir David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effect of the implementation of the new NICE Quality Standard on Spondyloarthritis, QS170 on the time taken for the diagnosis of ankylosing spondylitis; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Brine: No assessment has been made. On 28 June 2018, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published a new Quality Standard (QS) on spondyloarthritis. The QS includes four quality statements identified as the markers of high quality spondyloarthritis care. The first statement sets out that “Adults with suspected axial or peripheral spondyloarthritis are referred to a rheumatologist.” The standard advises that this may be monitored through local data collection, such as audit of patient records. QSs are important in setting out to patients, the public, commissioners and providers what a high quality service should look like in a particular area of care. Whilst providers and commissioners must have regard to NICE QSs in planning and delivering services, they do not provide a comprehensive service specification and are not mandatory.

Orkambi

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the oral Answer of the Prime Minister to the hon. Member for Erith and Thamesmead of 16 May 2018, Official Report, column 276, whether officials of his Department have met with the Prime Minister to discuss negotiations between NHS England and Vertex on the supply of the drug Orkambi.

Steve Brine: No officials from the Department have met with the Prime Minister to discuss Orkambi. However, my Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care met with the hon. Member for Dudley North (Ian Austin), the Rt. hon. Member for Hemel Hempstead (Sir Mike Penning), the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam (Paul Scully), the hon. Member for Erith and Thamesmead (Teresa Pearce) and the chief executive of the Cystic Fibrosis Trust, David Ramsden, on 4 July to discuss negotiations between NHS England and Vertex on the availability of Orkambi in the United Kingdom.

Analgesics

Tonia Antoniazzi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 1 February 2017 to Question 60736 on Analgesics, what the cost to the NHS was of purchasing opioid painkillers in 2016.

Steve Brine: The net ingredient cost to the National Health Service of opioid painkillers of items prescribed in the United Kingdom and dispensed in England for 2016 is provided in the following table.YearPrimary CareSecondary CareTotal2016292,085,46433,551,583325,637,046 Source: Prescription Cost Analysis; IQVIA 2018: Hospital Pharmacy Audit Index

Internet: Harassment

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on steps to address the effect of online trolling on people's psychological wellbeing.

Jackie Doyle-Price: My Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care had a meeting with the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) (Matt Hancock) on 20 February 2018 which included discussion on the impact of social media on children and young people’s mental health.The Department of Health and Social Care and DCMS are working closely together, alongside other Government Departments, to minimise potentially harmful impacts of social media use on children and young people’s mental health and ensure a robust, joined up approach. DCMS are delivering a range of work to address online harms, including an Online Harms White Paper at the end of the year.

Patients: Safety

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 19 June 2018 to Question 152793 on Patients: Safety, whether any steps have been taken to determine the reason for the increase in never events.

Caroline Dinenage: The Government is committed to eradicating Never Events and ensuring best practice is shared throughout the health care system.That is why in December 2017, the Secretary of State commissioned the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to undertake a safety thematic review of Never Events, under Section 48 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008.The CQC’s review, which is expected to report in autumn 2018, will examine the underlying issues in National Health Service trusts in England that contribute to the occurrence of Never Events and identify the learning that can be applied to wider safety issues.The ‘Never Events Policy and Framework’ was revised in March 2015 and the definition of Never Events changed to provide further clarity over their purpose, and; to ensure incidents are easily identifiable when they occur and are not dependent on the severity of outcome of the incident.The list of Never Events was reviewed at the same time to ensure that they were all compliant with the revised definition and to consider any new issues that were appropriate to be introduced as Never Events into the NHS in England.Further revisions to the Never Events policy and framework and an updated Never Events list were published in January 2018. Therefore it is not possible to compare the number of Never Events reported on an annual basis.As mentioned in my earlier reply to Question 152793, NHS providers are encouraged to report all Never Events, and the CQC regards failure to report a Never Event, a breach of a provider’s registration requirement.The number of Never Events reported by independent providers is also increasing as they report more incidents to our National Reporting and Learning System.

Spondyloarthritis

James Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department plans to take with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to support the adoption and implementation of the new NICE Quality Standard on Spondyloarthritis, QS170.

Steve Brine: The Department is not involved in the direct promotion of quality standards. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) promotes Quality Standards (QS) and other guidance via its website, newsletters and other media. On 28 June 2018, NICE published a new QS on spondyloarthritis. The QS includes four quality statements identified as the markers of high quality spondyloarthritis care. QS are important in setting out to patients, the public, commissioners and providers what a high quality service should look like in a particular area of care. Whilst providers and commissioners must have regard to NICE QS in planning and delivering services, they do not provide a comprehensive service specification and are not mandatory.

Genito-urinary Medicine

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on the number of self-testing sexual health kits issued to patients by each NHS trust over the last five years.

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effect of self-testing schemes on the quality of services provided at local sexual health clinics.

Steve Brine: Self-testing kits/tests for sexually transmitted infections involve the test being carried out by the individual and the result being interpreted by that individual.Data on privately purchased HIV self-testing kits have been included in the HIV testing report, but no demographic information is available for these data. Further information is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/hiv-testing-in-england Self-sampling kits/tests involve the specimen collection being performed by the individual and returned to the lab or clinic for processing. Public Health England (PHE) collects data on self-sampling sexually transmitted infection kits provided by sexual health services by PHE centre; further information is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/sexually-transmitted-infections-stis-annual-data-tablesLocal authorities are responsible for improving the health of their local population and reducing health inequalities by assessing local need and commissioning services to meet identified needs. The Care Quality Commission is responsible for assuring the care of clinical services.

Genito-urinary Medicine

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to promote (a) sexual health and (b) sexual health education throughout the entire lifespan in the UK.

Steve Brine: Public Health England’s (PHE) Health promotion for sexual and reproductive health and HIV strategic action plan, 2016 to 2019 aims to reduce health inequalities and achieve improvements in sexual and reproductive health and HIV prevention across the life course. These actions include committing PHE to tailoring its approach to address the needs of key life stages by focusing on preventative intervention on critical periods of risk in people’s lives. PHE aims to achieve the greatest improvements in sexual health and reductions in health inequalities through education and early prevention. PHE has also launched a set of documents and is developing an action plan aimed at improving women’s reproductive health. Detailed information on actions and aims addressing sexual health and sexual health education throughout the life course is available at the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/488090/SRHandHIVStrategicPlan_211215.pdf Further information on reproductive health is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/reproductive-health-what-women-say

Genito-urinary Medicine

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce ageism in the sexual health sector.

Steve Brine: The Framework for Sexual Health Improvement published in March 2013 by the Department sets out our ambitions to improve sexual health outcomes across all age groups and what is needed to deliver these. Commissioners and providers of sexual health services need to ensure access to services to individuals of all ages, ensuring that differing needs are considered when planning services and interventions.

Genito-urinary Medicine

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the best mechanisms to provide the older population with access to sexual health (a) information and (b) care.

Steve Brine: Public Health England (PHE) has not made an assessment of the best mechanisms for providing sexual health information and care to the older population.Data on attendances at sexual health services in England are provided by age-group, ‘Table 3: Attendances by gender, sexual risk and age group, 2013-2017’, is attached. In April 2018, PHE published data on from the National HIV self-sampling service which describes patterns of service use, including by age group, gender and sexual behaviour which is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-hiv-self-sampling-service.Data on privately purchased HIV self-testing kits have been included in the HIV testing report, but no demographic information is available for these data. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/hiv-testing-in-england.PHE was granted approval by NHS Digital in May 2018 to enhance the Genitourinary medicine clinic activity dataset (GUMCAD), the national sexually transmitted infections (STI) Surveillance System in England, to collect information on whether people access sexual health services at their physical premises for STI testing or through their websites to order self-sampling kits. Implementation of this new GUMCAD dataset will commence in October 2018, after which PHE will be able to assess preferred routes of access by demographic and risk profiles, including by age group.



Table 3 Attendances by gender, risk and age group
(PDF Document, 2.08 MB)

HIV Infection: Drugs

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress has been made on the PrEP drugs trail; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Brine: As of 28 June 2018, 7,893 participants have been enrolled in the pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) Impact Trial at 140 clinics across England. Information on participating clinics and enrolment status is regularly updated on the PreP Impact Trial website at the following link:https://www.prepimpacttrial.org.uk/join-the-trialA reallocation of spaces took place in May 2018 meaning 139 of the clinics are open to recruitment for gay and bisexual men with a number of the reallocated places being held centrally by the trial sponsor, so that clinics can request more if they are approaching their full allocation of places.A proposal is also being assessed to consider increasing the total number of places available for the trial from 10,000 to 13,000. Work has begun with commissioners to prepare for future commissioning arrangements. More information on these developments can be found at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/commissioning/spec-services/npc-crg/blood-and-infection-group-f/f03/prep-trial-updates/

Genito-urinary Medicine

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to A Framework for Sexual Health Improvement in England, published by his Department in March 2013, when his Department plans to update that publication.

Steve Brine: The Department's publication, A Framework for Sexual Health Improvement in England (2013), is kept under review. There are no plans to update it at this time.

Genito-urinary Medicine

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve sexual health outcomes for people aged 50 and over; and what guidance is issued to health professionals to improve sexual health outcomes for those people.

Steve Brine: Public Health England’s (PHE) Health promotion for sexual and reproductive health and HIV strategic action plan, 2016 to 2019 aims to reduce health inequalities and achieve improvements in sexual and reproductive health and HIV prevention across the life course.PHE uses scientific evidence, evaluation and community engagement to undertake activities to improve sexual health outcomes for people aged 50 and over. Targeted and universal health promotion approaches include the national sexual health information programme to improve the public and professional understanding of sexually transmitted infections and sexual wellbeing; the national HIV prevention programme; the HIV self-sampling service; the set of documents highlighting reproductive health as a public health issue for women from across the life course and the forthcoming action plan due to be published in March 2019.Further information on targeted and universal health approaches across the life course is available at the following link:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/488090/SRHandHIVStrategicPlan_211215.pdfFurther information on reproductive health is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/reproductive-health-what-women-say

Patients: Transport

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding from the public purse his Department allocated to patient transport in 2017.

Steve Brine: Neither the Department nor NHS England hold the requested information.NHS England allocates funding to clinical commissioning croups (CCGs). Individual CCGs are responsible for commissioning local services, such as patient transport services, based on population need.It is for local leaders working together with NHS England and NHS Improvement, to make the best use of the funding that has been allocated to them.

General Practitioners: Easington

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many GPs in Easington constituency are due to retire in the next five years.

Steve Brine: The data requested is not available as there is not a mandatory retirement age for general practitioners.

General Practitioners

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the reasons that deprived communities are unable to (a) recruit and (b) retain GPs.

Steve Brine: In December 2015 NHS England published a research document ‘Looking to the future: the recruitment, retention and return of GPs’ which considered the issues around in general practitioner (GP) recruitment and retention. This is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/commissioning/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2015/01/gp-retention-return-imp-summary-rep.pdfFollowing publication, a number of national GP recruitment and retention schemes have been put in place including the Targeted Enhanced Recruitment Scheme and GP intensive support sites.The Targeted Enhanced Recruitment Scheme is a national incentive scheme which funds a £20,000 salary supplement to attract GP trainees to work in areas of the country where GP training places have been unfilled for a number of years which may include deprived communities. 238 places were filled in 2016 and 2017. 265 places have been made available in 2018.In June 2018 NHS England announced the launch of the GP Retention Intensive Support Sites. Seven areas across the country have been selected which are struggling the most with GP retention. The sites will bring interventions together at different levels – personal support for GPs, practice support and system support/improvements – to achieve the greatest possible impact on the engagement and retention of local GPs.

Health Services: County Durham

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will conduct a quality review of health services in County Durham.

Caroline Dinenage: The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and adult social care providers in England and has a key responsibility in the overall assurance of safety and quality of health and adult social care services.Under section 48 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 the Secretary of State can request the CQC to conduct special reviews or investigations into the provision of National Health Service care, adult social services or the exercise of functions by English health authorities. However, there are currently no plans to request a review of the health services in County Durham.

Lung Cancer: Screening

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of a national lung cancer screening programme.

Steve Brine: The United Kingdom National Screening Committee (UK NSC) last reviewed the evidence to screen for lung cancer in 2006 and recommended that population screening should not be introduced. This was due to a lack of evidence to support the use of the screen tests within a population screening programme and that the benefit to screen had not been demonstrated. The UK NSC will review the evidence again after the results of the NELSON randomised lung cancer screening trial are published.The UK NSC recognises that lung cancer is common and unless found at an early stage the outcome is very poor. The Committee is currently working with the National Institute of Health Research to assess the effectiveness and cost of screening heavy smokers for lung cancer.

Lung Diseases

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce lung health inequalities in deprived areas.

Steve Brine: Two of the most significant respiratory health issues that impact deprived areas are poor air quality and smoking.Minimising health inequalities is a core part of Public Health England’s (PHE’s) Mission and Strategic Vision for 2020. PHE was commissioned by the Department to review the evidence for effective interventions on air quality and provide recommendations that will significantly reduce harm from air pollution and impact on health inequalities at the local level.PHE has also published a number of reports on urban design which aim to support reductions in air pollution.Smoking is a leading cause of a number of respiratory diseases including lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and is the leading cause of health inequalities. The Government’s Tobacco Control Plan for England, published in July 2017, re-emphasises the important role of local areas in providing support for smokers to stop smoking. As part of a comprehensive programme of national and local tobacco control activity, this is an important means of tackling inequalities in lung health in disadvantaged communities.

Members: Correspondence

Sir Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to answer the letter of 4 June 2018 from the Rt hon. Member for Hemel Hempstead on behalf of his constituent Mr John Sweetman, ref/ Sweetman /19101.

Steve Brine: My Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care responded to the Rt hon. Member on 4 July.

Eating Disorders

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) children and (b) adult eating disorder services that use the single measure of (i) body mass index or (ii) length of illness as the basis for offering treatment.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The information requested is not collected. National Health Service eating disorder services should follow the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence clinical guideline for the recognition and treatment of an eating disorder, which states that services must not use single measures such as Body Mass Index or duration of illness to determine whether to offer treatment for an eating disorder. The guideline is available at: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng69

Mental Health Services: Restraint Techniques

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps the Government is taking to reduce the use of restraint in mental health units.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Government is committed to reducing the use of restraint in mental health settings and is fully supporting the Mental Health Units (Use of Force) Private Members Bill. This Bill seeks to reduce the use of force and restrictive practices across the National Health Service and mental health units. Additionally, work is underway to reduce the use of restrictive interventions underway across national organisations as part of a wider patient safety focus led by NHS England, NHS Improvement and the Care Quality Commission (CQC). The work includes improving the definitions of restraint, improving the quality of local recording of incidents and therefore national reporting, and improving the quality of training staff receive on restrictive interventions. As well as the above work, NHS Improvement is leading a national mental health patient safety initiative informed by CQC intelligence. Mental health providers will be involved in this initiative which emphasises shared learning and embedding of sustainable quality improvement approaches in mental health service delivery.

Mental Health Services: Females

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that there is sufficient trauma-informed care for women experiencing mental health problems.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Department has set up a Women’s Mental Health Taskforce in response to the findings from the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Study (2014), which found a significant rise in mental ill health among women, particularly between 16-24 years old. The Taskforce’s key objective is to develop proposals and deliver action collaboratively to improve women’s mental health. The role of trauma informed care is under consideration. The Taskforce is working with other Government Departments and wider stakeholders to ensure its work aligns with existing policies and programmes, and will be delivered by summer 2018. Improving mental health is a top priority for this Government and it is committed to ensuring that those who require mental health treatment and care are able to access the appropriate services for their needs.

Midland Metropolitan Hospital

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress has he made on restarting work on the Midland Metropolitan Hospital in Smethwick.

Stephen Barclay: As stated in the answer I gave in reply to Question 150571, Ministers across Government are determined to finish construction as quickly as possible and to do this in a way that secures best value for the tax payer. Following the decision that a contractual solution should now be considered, we remain in active discussions with all relevant parties to restart the project as soon as possible.

Influenza: Vaccination

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether funding will be made available from the public purse to provide free flu vaccinations for staff working in independent care services for the winter of 2018-19.

Steve Brine: NHS England will continue to make funding available in 2018/19 to support the vaccination of social care workers that offer direct patient/client care. This will supplement any established occupational health schemes that employers have in place to offer the flu vaccination to their workforce. In addition, funding will be extended to include health and care staff in the voluntary managed hospice sector that offer direct patient/client care. NHS England will be writing to organisations representing the independent and voluntary care sector shortly to confirm the details of the scheme for 2018/19.

Obesity: Children

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care of 25 June 2018, Official Report, column 633, on the Childhood Obesity Strategy: Chapter 2, what the timelines are for (a) developing and (b) publishing chapter 3 of that strategy.

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what mechanisms the Government plans to use to monitor progress towards achieving the ambition to halve childhood obesity by 2030; and how regularly the outcomes of the policies designed to meet that target will be evaluated.

Steve Brine: We will measure progress towards our ambition to halve childhood obesity by 2030 annually through the National Child Measurement Programme and Health Survey for England. We know achieving this will not be easy, but it is a measure of our ambition and resolve to tackle this issue. We remain committed to reviewing what more can be done to make sure we meet our ambition of halving childhood obesity and will continue to monitor progress and emerging evidence carefully. Where progress is not being delivered, we will consider what further action can be taken to help us to achieve what no other country in the world has yet achieved: success in tackling childhood obesity.

Children: Obesity

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Government's Childhood Obesity Plan: Chapter 2, published in June 2018, whether the Government's consultation on introducing a 9pm watershed for TV advertising of products high in fat, salt or sugar will cover (a) whether such a policy should be implemented and (b) the timing of such a watershed.

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Government's Childhood Obesity Plan: Chapter 2, published in June 2018, whether the Government's consultation on introducing a 9pm watershed for TV advertising of products high in fat, salt or sugar will include an explicit preferred option of prohibiting such advertising before 9pm.

Steve Brine: Our ambition is to see further advertising restrictions applied which limit children’s exposure to high fat, salt and sugar (HFSS) food and drink advertising, incentivise reformulation, and ensure that the healthiest of products are advertised freely across all programming. We also want to put control back into parents’ hands by making it clearer for them when and where HFSS adverts can and cannot be shown, so that they can make the best choices for their children. The consultation will explore options for implementing a 9pm watershed on TV advertising to ensure that any restrictions are proportionate, help to incentivise reformulation in line with the aims of the sugar and calorie reduction programmes, and consider a focus on those products that children consume and most contribute to the problem of childhood obesity. Further details about the consultation will be available later this year.

Health Services and Social Services: Disclosure of Information

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve the sharing of data across health and social care.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Government is committed to championing the safe use of data, enabling data to flow in a lawful, secure and appropriate way to improve outcomes for patients. Sharing data offers immense promise for improving the National Health Service and social care system, as well as benefitting individuals through unlocking new treatments and medical breakthroughs and driving up quality and safe care that improves outcomes and lives. On 25 May 2018 the Government launched the new national data opt-out which gives people the choice of how their confidential patient information will be used beyond their direct care. NHS England has chosen five initial areas to become Local Health and Care Record Exemplars. These exemplars will support delivery of efficient and effective individual care. They will also provide a platform to explore the potential for the use of individual data – in an anonymised form – to support other functions, such as population health management and research.

Social Services

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress has been made on improving the social care interface between the NHS and local authorities.

Caroline Dinenage: We know that people need health, social care and other public services to work seamlessly together to deliver better quality care. That is why in 2013 we announced the Better Care Fund (BCF), implemented from 2015, which allows local authorities and clinical commissioning groups to pool budgets for the purposes of integrated care. The Fund has incentivised collaborative working in local areas, helping people to live independently in their communities for as long as possible. In 2016/17 85% of areas agreed or strongly agreed that the delivery of their BCF plan had a positive impact on integration locally. The Government has already taken significant action to help reduce delayed transfers of care (DToC), including providing an additional £2 billion of funding for social care, setting expectations locally for reductions in DToC and asking the Care Quality Commission to undertake a series of local system reviews to evaluate the boundary between health and social care’s functionality, the findings of which have recently been published. Since February last year, more than 1,600 beds per day have been freed up nationally by reducing National Health Service and social care delays.

Pharmacy: Finance

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with the NHS Business Services Authority on payments to pharmacists.

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the level of reported underpayments to pharmacists by the NHS Business Services Authority.

Steve Brine: The Department has regular accountability review meetings with the NHS Business Service Authority (BSA) to discuss their performance including for prescription pricing and payments to pharmacies. The NHS BSA is obliged to report on a monthly basis against key performance indicators which cover timeliness of service delivery; and quality (accuracy) of service delivery for the National Health Service prescription services. The latest published data for accuracy of prescription processing affecting payment to pharmacies, shows a high and continuing improving level of accuracy. This is available at the following link: https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/pharmacies-gp-practices-and-appliance-contractors/payments-and-pricing/how-we-process-prescriptions

Pharmacy: Finance

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of trends in the level of Government funding for pharmacies.

Steve Brine: In addition to Government funding set out within the Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework (CPCF) community pharmacies can also receive Government funding from local National Health Service teams and local authorities for locally commissioned services. The data currently available to the Department allow regular and reliable monitoring of funding provided via the CPCF for the reimbursement of dispensed products on NHS prescriptions, including margin, and the delivery of fees and allowances. This is regularly assessed and shared on a confidential basis with the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee and following negotiations adjustments are made to ensure that the full allocation of funding is delivered.

Members: Correspondence

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to respond to the letter of 18 April 2018 from the right hon. Member for North Norfolk to the Minister of State for Health on the East of England Ambulance Service.

Stephen Barclay: I responded to the Rt. hon. Member’s letter on 4 July.

General Practitioners

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 4 July 2018 to Question 158305, how many GPs there were for every 100,000 people in September for each of the last eight years.

Steve Brine: The requested information is presented in the following table. Retainers, registrar and locums numbers are not comparable across the timescale requested and have therefore been excluded. CensusAll Practitioners (excluding Retainers and Registrars and Locums) headcount per 100,000 population200969.8201067.8201167.8201266.9201366.5201466.5201565.5201663.6201762.0Source: NHS Digital Notes:All data as at 30 September for the relevant year.Prior to 2015 figures are sourced from National Health Application and Infrastructure Services general practitioner (GP) Payments (Exeter) System. From 2015 figures are sourced from the workforce Minimum Dataset and include estimates for missing data.GP Headcount per 100,000 population figures calculated based on the Office for National Statistics figures for England population that were available at the time the relevant GP headcount figures were originally published.

Compulsorily Detained Psychiatric Patients: Ethnic Groups

Sir Vince Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of individuals detained in hospital under the Mental Health Act identify as BAME.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The proportion of individuals detained in hospital under the Mental Health Act identifying as Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) during 2016-17 was 24.6%. Further information is given in the following table. This is based on information collected as part of the Mental Health Services Dataset (MHSDS). The data used to produce this analysis are known to be incomplete at national level. Further details are available in the Mental Health Act Statistics, Annual Figures: 2016-17 publication, which is available at the following link: https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/mental-health-act-statistics-annual-figures/mental-health-act-statistics-annual-figures-2016-17-experimental-statistics  The number of people detained under the Mental Health Act, by ethnicity, 2016/17, England CountProportionBase PopulationAll people detained37,367-55,268,067All people detained, where ethnicity was recorded34,866100%53,012,456White26,27675.4%45,281,142BAME8,59024.6%7,731,314Mixed9902.8%1,192,879Asian2,5257.2%3,763,900Black3,79510.9%1,846,614Other1,2803.7%927,921Not Known2,501--Source: MHSDS Notes:ONS Census 2011 - table reference: DC2101EW - Ethnic group by sex by age, QS211EW - Ethnic group (detailed).Records where ethnicity was not recorded, not stated or not known have been excluded from the total. Data provided on the Mental Health Act from the MHSDS is likely to be an undercount. This is due to coverage issues meaning the data for 2016/17 are incomplete at England level. Further information about the Data Quality of the Mental Health Act data is available in the Background Data Quality report from the Mental Health Act Statistics 2016/17 publication: http://digital.nhs.uk/pubs/mha1617

Mental Health Services: Restraint Techniques

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people with mental health diagnoses have died as a result of being placed physical restraint in the last five years.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The information is not available in the format requested.

Attorney General

Crown Prosecution Service

Priti Patel: To ask the Attorney General, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Crown Prosecution Service in charging suspects with the appropriate offence.

Jeremy Wright: Holding answer received on 06 July 2018



Her Majesty’s Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate (HMCPSI) inspects the work of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and reports to the Law Officers. The Code for Crown Prosecutors (the Code) provides that it is the duty of prosecutors to make sure that the right person is prosecuted for the right offence. Between 2016 and 2018 HMCPSI inspected 12 of the 14 CPS Areas in England and Wales and found that in a very high proportion of cases the CPS correctly applied the Code and that the charges proceeded with were the correct ones. HMCPSI reported that in over 94.5% of the cases they inspected the decision to charge complied with the Code; that measure relates to all the provisions of the Code and not only whether any offence charged was the correct one.

Crown Prosecution Service

Priti Patel: To ask the Attorney General, if he will commission research into the extent to which charging decisions made by the Crown Prosecution Service differ from the expectation of (a) Police and (b) victims of crime.

Jeremy Wright: Holding answer received on 06 July 2018



HMCPSI provide reports to the Law Officers and the public on the work of the CPS and that includes analysis of charging decisions made by the CPS with reference to the Code for Crown Prosecutors. HMCPSI reports and CPS performance information do not provide data on the expectations of the police or victims as to charging decisions and any difference between those expectations and the charging decision made by the CPS. If the police wish to query or challenge a CPS charging decision, that can be done through a formal escalation procedure. If a victim wishes to query or challenge a CPS charging decision that can be done through the Victim’s Right to Review Scheme, the Victim Communication and Liaison Scheme and the CPS Feedback and Complaints Scheme.

Crown Prosecution Service

Priti Patel: To ask the Attorney General, what estimate he has made of the number of occasions the Crown Prosecution Service has charged suspects with offences that are deemed less serious than the offences which the police investigated in the last 12 months.

Jeremy Wright: Holding answer received on 06 July 2018



The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of those occasions where the Crown Prosecution Service charges suspects with offences considered less serious than the offences which the police investigated. This information could only be obtained by examining CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost.

Crown Prosecution Service: Staff

Nic Dakin: To ask the Attorney General, whether his Department has made an assessment of the effect of the reduction in the number of CPS staff on the number of criminal charges brought in England and Wales between 2010 and 2017.

Jeremy Wright: Whilst the Crown Prosecution Service has seen a reduction of staff, this does not necessarily correlate to the decreasing caseload. During the same period, the volume of police charged cases and referrals for pre-charge decisions has declined. Importantly, the Crown Prosecution Service has maintained its conviction rate of around 84% throughout this time.

Department for International Development

Yemen: Internally Displaced People

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent estimate she has made of the number of internally displaced people in Yemen.

Alistair Burt: According to the latest International Organisation for Migration (IOM) estimates, there are currently 2 million internally displaced people in Yemen. DFID is providing up to £36 million to assist displaced people and migrants in Yemen between 2017 and 2020. Approximately £14 million of this is intended to support internally displaced people.

Yemen: Internally Displaced People

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps his Department is taking to support internally displaced people in Yemen.

Alistair Burt: DFID is providing up to £36 million to assist displaced people and migrants in Yemen between 2017 and 2020. Approximately £14 million of this is intended to support internally displaced people.

Yemen: Ports

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to improve the effectiveness of the UN Verification and Inspection Mechanism for Yemen.

Alistair Burt: The UK is providing £1.3 million to help the UN’s Verification and Inspection Mechanism (UNVIM) facilitate commercial imports of food and fuel through the Red Sea ports of Hodeidah and Saleef by giving the Saudi-led Coalition confidence that weapons are not coming into Yemen on commercial ships. Alongside this financial support, we have also deployed UK experts to support the inspections of ships in Djibouti, increasing the proportion of physical inspections ten-fold.

Developing Countries: Females

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps she is taking to ensure that projects that her Department co-designs and co-funds with the Department for International Trade promote women’s rights in UK trade with developing countries after the UK leaves the EU.

Alistair Burt: The UK is committed to promoting the economic empowerment of all women and recognises trade as an important lever for equality. DFID has been at the forefront of supporting the Department for International Trade to deliver on the UK’s commitment to a gender-responsive approach to trade once we leave the EU. The Prime Minister recently announced the SheTrades Commonwealth programme, which will enhance the competitiveness of women entrepreneurs in a number of Commonwealth developing countries, connecting them to markets and opportunities in the UK and the rest of the world.

Yemen: Prosthetics

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what funding her Department has allocated to programmes providing prosthetic limbs to people in Yemen.

Alistair Burt: DFID does not fund any programme specifically providing prosthetic limbs to people in Yemen. However, between 2010 and 2018, DFID has funded the Yemen Social Fund for Development (SFD) with over £108 million. This includes support to SFD’s disability programme, which has supported more than 2,500 children with disabilities, trained over 300 community-based rehabilitation workers, and equipped more than 80 community-based rehabilitation facilities for children with disabilities.

Kenya: Malaria

Stephen Kerr: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what funding her Department has allocated to Malaria (a) prevention and (b) treatment programmes in Kenya.

Harriett Baldwin: DFID’s support for malaria prevention and treatment in Kenya is delivered through the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (the ‘Global Fund’). The Global Fund has, to date, allocated more than USD $300m to malaria grants in Kenya. 10% of this (USD $30m) can be attributed to DFID based on our share of global contributions to the Global Fund.

Disaster Relief

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the criteria are which are used to trigger the deployment of the UK Emergency Medical Team to a humanitarian crisis overseas.

Alistair Burt: After a humanitarian disaster, the affected government will send a request to the World Health Organisation (WHO) who, in turn, will send out a call for assistance to all qualified and functioning Emergency Medical Teams. The decision to respond to each request is made after considering needs, safety concerns and the capacity of the team.

Department for Education

Pupils: Hearing Impairment

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he plans hold discussions with the National Deaf Children’s Society on changes to funding for deaf children’s education.

Nadhim Zahawi: I refer the hon. Member for Bolton South East to the answer I gave on 4 June 2018 to Question 146815: https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2018-05-22/146815/.

Children: Social Services

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of the (a) quality of, (b) availability of and (c) adequacy of funding for social care services for disabled children.

Nadhim Zahawi: I refer the hon. Member for Denton and Reddish to the answer I gave on 4 July 2018 to Question 159051.

Higher Education: West Midlands

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the value for money for students of Higher Education studying at universities in the West Midlands.

Mr Sam Gyimah: Holding answer received on 05 July 2018



My right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister announced on 19 February, that the government is conducting a major review across post-18 education and funding. The review will ensure that the system is giving every individual a genuine choice between high quality technical, vocational and academic routes, students and taxpayers are getting value for money, and employers can access the skilled workforce they need. We want to ensure that students receive value for money whatever and wherever they study, and that the system meets the skills needs of national and local labour markets. The review is being supported by an independent panel, led by Philip Augar, and comprising experts from across post-18 education and the business world. The panel will publish their report at an interim stage, before the government concludes the overall review in early 2019. Government reforms are improving the information available to students to help them make informed choices. The Teaching Excellence and Student Outcomes Framework (TEF) will focus on what matters to students: teaching quality, the learning experience, and student outcomes. The development of subject-level TEF will give students more information than ever before. Longitudinal Education Outcomes data will also provide students with information on employment and earnings outcomes of higher education graduates by degree subject studied and university attended. The Department for Education has not specifically assessed value for money for higher education students studying at universities in the West Midlands.

Apprentices: EU Nationals

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether employers will still be able to claim funding for apprentices from the EU that start in 2019 for the duration of their apprenticeship.

Anne Milton: Holding answer received on 06 July 2018



We have agreed to protect the rights of EU citizens in the UK and UK nationals in the EU under the Withdrawal Agreement. During the implementation period, EU citizens coming to the UK and UK nationals going to the EU will be able to live, work and study broadly as they do now. Therefore, employers taking on apprentices who are covered by the Withdrawal Agreement, will continue to be able to access funding beyond March 2019. Once an eligible individual has started an apprenticeship, we will always fund them through to completion as long as they retain their eligibility to work in UK.

Apprentices: Taxation

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the number of apprenticeship levy-paying employers in England that have used that funding to pay for MBA courses.

Anne Milton: Holding answer received on 06 July 2018



Apprenticeship funding can only be used to pay for apprenticeships and not courses, such as a Master of Business Administration. Whilst apprenticeships may replicate some training delivered by traditional courses, an apprenticeship has to meet certain requirements to make sure it combines on and off-the-job training and delivers occupational competence.The Senior Leader apprenticeship standard, which is at masters’ level, has only been available since 27 February 2018. The department holds the overall number of starts on each apprenticeship standard but does not currently have published data on the number of Senior Leader starts.We do not hold data on which apprenticeship standards levy-paying employers spend their apprenticeship funding on.

Carillion: Apprentices

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 2 July 2018 to Question 157841, whether the 225 apprentices transferred from Carillion Training Services Limited who are actively seeking employment or training are continuing to be paid apprenticeship wages.

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education,  pursuant to the Answer of 2 July 2018 to Question 157841, how many of the 775 apprentices transferred from Carillion Training Services Limited who have been found new employment have been placed with public sector employers.

Anne Milton: Holding answer received on 06 July 2018



Apprentices are still paid by the official receiver if they continue to participate in learning and are actively seeking alternative employment with the support of the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB).775 apprentices have successfully found new jobs with an employer who have agreed to continue supporting their apprenticeship to completion. The new employers are mainly small and medium-sized building contractors, which is consistent with the types of employer who recruit most of the apprentices in the construction sector. We do not have all of the new Individual Learner Records for the transferred Carillion Training Services apprentices reported by the new providers yet, but the data currently available from CITB has identified 15 apprentices are now employed by seven public sector employers (local authorities and housing associations) and two have joined the Army as apprentices.

Ministry of Justice

Women's Centres

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women’s centres were in operation in each year from 2007.

Edward Argar: We do not hold information on the number of women’s centres that are, or have been, in operation across England and Wales since 2007. Women’s Centres, as voluntary organisations, are managed independently of the Department.

Women's Prisons: Closures

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women’s prisons his Department plans to close in the next four years.

Edward Argar: On 27 June we published our strategy for female offenders, which sets out our vision to see fewer women in custody, especially on short-term sentences, and a greater proportion of women managed in the community successfully. We previously announced, in 2013, our intention to close HM Prison and Young Offender Institution Askham Grange and HMP Prison and Young Offender Institution East Sutton Park. However no dates were set for the closure of these establishments. No further decisions have been made about future prison closures (male or female) beyond those which have already been announced.

Women's Prisons: Closures

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much money has been raised for the public purse by the (a) closure and (b) sale of women’s prisons since 2010.

Edward Argar: Since 2010 there has been one prison closure in the women’s prison estate which was in June 2016 when HMP and Young Offender Institute (HMP&YOI) Holloway was closed. In the financial year 2015-2016 the overall resource expenditure of the site was £21,246,449. A full breakdown of costs per prison and other prison performance statistics can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/prison-performance-statistics-2015-to-2016 We expect to make an announcement on the sale of the former prison later this year.

Offenders: Females

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans he has for the funding of the Female Offender Strategy after 2021.

Edward Argar: A key commitment of the Government’s Female Offender Strategy, published on 27th June 2018, is the investment of £5 million of cross-Government funding over two years in community provision for women. As part of this investment, we have launched an initial £3.5m grant competition for 2018/19 and 2019/20, which will provide funding for community provision for female offenders. We hope that successful applicants will use this to secure long-term funding to help sustain the support they provide. Discussions regarding future departmental spending plans are ongoing and will be set in due course.

Women's Prisons

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much money his Department previously allocated for the (a) construction and (b) operation of female community prisons.

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much of the money his Department previously allocated for the construction and operation of female community prisons has (a) been spent elsewhere and (b) is planned to be spent elsewhere in his Department.

Edward Argar: We have consulted with stakeholders as part of the development our strategy for female offenders and reviewed the evidence about custodial and community interventions. The overwhelming response, and the strength of the evidence, demonstrated that we should shift our emphasis from custody to the community, and as such will not be perusing plans to build community prisons for women. On 27 June we published our strategy for female offenders, which sets out our vision to see fewer women in custody, especially on short-term sentences, and a greater proportion of women managed in the community successfully. The strategy launched a programme of work to deliver better outcomes for women, their families and wider society, supported by £5 million of cross-government funding over two years. We have also committed to work with local and national partners to develop a pilot for ‘residential women’s centres’ in at least five sites across England and Wales. The publication of this document is the start of a new and significant programme of work to deliver better outcomes for female offenders at all points of the justice system. This will take some years to deliver and we will have the opportunity to revisit funding issues as we take work forward.I remain committed to delivering these key reforms, which includes the female offender strategy, and ensuring there is sufficient funding for female offenders

Prisoners: Families

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisons have produced local strategies to support prisoners to improve their level of engagement with their families.

Rory Stewart: All but ten prisons in England have developed local Family and Significant Other strategies. An overarching strategy is also currently being developed for prisons in Wales. All prisons in England and Wales are working towards having final strategies in place by the end of the autumn. These will be published on the gov.uk website. We are committed to transforming prisons into places of safety and reform and we recognise the need to provide those in our custody with stable environments, as well as opportunities to change their behaviour and turn away from a life of crime. Relationships with families can play a key role in this.

Advisory Board on Female Offenders

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many meetings of the Advisory Board on Female Offenders (a) have taken place, (b) have been attended by a Minister of his Department and (c) he has attended since 2013.

Edward Argar: Since its inception in May 2013, there have been 20 formal quarterly meetings of the Advisory Board on Female Offenders, each chaired by the Minister with responsibility for female offenders. The Secretary of State for Justice, David Gauke, has met some of the Advisory Board members informally. I look forward to chairing my first Board meeting in October 2018, [and was pleased to be able to meet informally with some of the stakeholder members last month].

Offenders: Females

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what representations he has received from the Advisory Board on Female Offenders on the level of funding for the female offender strategy.

Edward Argar: The Advisory Board on Female Offenders have been engaged throughout the development of the female offender strategy and have expressed views on level of funding as part of that process. In recognition, we are reforming the Advisory Board to give it a greater role in monitoring and advising on the delivery of the strategy. Following publication of the strategy on 27 June, 10 stakeholder members wrote to the Secretary of State for Justice welcoming the strategy, but expressing concern about the level of investment. Our strategy for female offenders sets out the Government’s commitment to a new programme of work for female offenders. This is driven by our vision, which includes wanting to see fewer women in custody, especially on short-term sentences, and a greater proportion of women managed in the community successfully. It will take some years to deliver our aims and commitments, and we will keep funding under review as this work progresses. As an immediate step, we have announced £5m investment in community provision for female offenders over the next two years, including a £3.5m grant funding competition to support women’s community services and multi-agency Whole System Approaches to female offenders.

Thameside Young Offender Institution

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many young adults in HMYOI Thameside have accumulated in total (a) 1-24 (b) 25-49 (c) 50-74 (d) 75-99 (e) 100-149 and (f) 150 or more additional days of imprisonment imposed as punishment since their arrival.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many young adults in HMYOI Wormwood Scrubs have accumulated in total (a) 1-24 (b) 25-49 (c) 50-74 (d) 75-99 (e) 100-149 and (f) 150 or more additional days of imprisonment imposed as punishment since their arrival.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many young adults in HMYOI Deerbolt have accumulated in total (a) 1-24 (b) 25-49 (c) 50-74 (d) 75-99 (e) 100-149 and (f) 150 or more additional days of imprisonment imposed as punishment since their arrival.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many young adults in HMYOI Swinfen Hall have accumulated in total (a) 1-24 (b) 25-49 (c) 50-74 (d) 75-99 (e) 100-149 and (f) 150 or more additional days of imprisonment imposed as punishment since their arrival.

Rory Stewart: Discipline procedures are central to the maintenance of a safe, decent and rehabilitative custodial environment. They require adjudications to be conducted lawfully, fairly and justly. Only Independent Adjudicators, who are District Judges or Deputy District Judges, can, in cases deemed to be sufficiently serious, make an award of additional days. All prisoners have a full opportunity to hear what is alleged against them and to present their case. Young or vulnerable prisoners, who may lack experience of adjudications, are encouraged to request help from an advocate. The most serious offences are referred to the police. The tables attached provide statistics on the number of young adult prisoners awarded additional days following proven adjudications between 2013 and 2017 for each prison, by age group.



Tables
(Word Document, 22.4 KB)

Women's Prisons: Expenditure

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the total spend has been on the female prison estate in each year since 2010.

Rory Stewart: HMPPS routinely publishes average costs per prisoner, costs per prison place and overall prison unit costs for each private and public sector prison in England and Wales, including all categories of the female estate. This information is produced on an annual basis and is published after the end of each financial year. Information on prison expenditure for previous financial years can be accessed in the Prison and Probation Performance Statistics pages for each financial year on the www.gov.uk website. Prison unit costs can be found within the Excel document Costs per prison place and cost per prisoner by individual prison establishment in the ‘Cost by Establishment’ tab. The most recent published figures for financial year 2016-17 can be accessed on the www.gov.uk website from the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistic s/prison-performance-statistics-2016-to-2017 We are committed to doing all we can to address the issues around female offending so we can better protect the public and deliver more effective rehabilitation. I am pleased to say that on 27 June, we published our strategy for female offenders, which sets out our vision and plan to improve outcomes for women in the community and custody. This strategy sets out the Government’s commitment to a new programme of work for female offenders, driven by our vision to see: fewer women coming into the criminal justice system,fewer women in custody, especially on short-term sentences, and a greater proportion of women managed in the community successfully; and better conditions for those in custody.

Doncaster Young Offender Institution

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of safety levels at HMYOI Doncaster.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of safety levels at HMYOI Wormwood Scrubs.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of safety levels at HMYOI Thameside.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of safety levels at HMYOI Wandsworth.

Rory Stewart: We keep levels of safety at all prison establishments under constant review, using data for assaults, self-harm incidents and self-inflicted deaths, HMIP inspection reports and the outputs of internal assurance reviews of safety, supplemented by ongoing operational intelligence. Published statistics for a range of measures of safety, including data for individual prisons, can be found at:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/safety-in-custody-quarterly-update-to-december-2017. The levels of violence, suicide and self-harm in our prisons are far too high and we are taking urgent action to address these problems. Assaults on our hardworking staff will never be tolerated. We are ensuring that prison officers have the tools they need to do the job, rolling out body-worn cameras, police-style handcuffs and restraints, and trialling PAVA incapacitant spray. Our recruitment drive is vital to ensuring prisons are safe, secure and decent so they can successfully rehabilitate offenders, and 90 per cent of our additional 3,111 prison officers are due to be in post by the summer.

Sentencing: Females

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women sentenced to prison in 2017 for violence against the person received sentences of (a) 0-1 months, (b) 0-3 months, (c) 0-6 months, (d) 0-12 months and (e) 12 months or more.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women sentenced to prison in 2017 for Sexual offences received sentences of (a) 0-1 months, (b) 0-3 months, (c) 0-6 months, (d) 0-12 months and (e) 12 months or more.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women sentenced to prison in 2017 for robbery received sentences of (a) 0-1 months, (b) 0-3 months, (c) 0-6 months, (d) 0-12 months and (e) 12 months or more.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women sentenced to prison in 2017 for theft offences received sentences of (a) 0-1 months, (b) 0-3 months, (c) 0-6 months, (d) 0-12 months and (e) 12 months or more.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women sentenced to prison in 2017 for criminal damage and arson received sentences of (a) 0-1 months, (b) 0-3 months, (c) 0-6 months, (d) 0-12 months and (e) 12 months or more.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women sentenced to prison in 2017 for drug offences received sentences of (a) 0-1 months, (b) 0-3 months, (c) 0-6 months, (d) 0-12 months and (e) 12 months or more.

Edward Argar: The number of women sentenced to custody for sexual offences, robbery, theft offences, criminal damage and arson and drug offences who received a custodial sentence of 0-1 months, 0-3 months, 0-6 months, 0-12 months and 12 months or more, can be found in Table 1. Table 1: Number of female offenders sentenced to immediate custody in 2017 by offence group and sentence length (1)Custodial sentence length  0-1 months0-3 months0-6 months0-12 months12 months +(2)TotalViolence against the person49135227324334658Sexual offences-6894958Robbery011129158187Theft Offences1,2602,5773,0353,1402803,420Criminal damage and arson2712145266Drug offences6789112129290419Possession of weapons126516119022212Public order offences8421327429810308Miscellaneous crimes against society108184314452152604Fraud Offences1765117190163353Summary non-motoring2786678338361837Summary motoring1484114114-114Grand Total1,8924,0935,2185,7251,5117,236   1) The figures given in the table relate to defendants for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.   2) Figures for '12 months +' includes life sentences On 27 June we published our strategy for female offenders, which sets out the Government’s commitment to a new programme of work for female offenders. We announced a shift in focus from prisons to women’s centres which focus on the full range of support services beginning with five pilots across England and Wales. We are committed to addressing the issues around female offending so we can better protect the public and deliver more effective rehabilitation.

Child Support and Social Security Benefits: Appeals

Ronnie Cowan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many First-tier tribunal cases relating to to (a) social security and (b) child support claims have taken place in Inverclyde constituency in each of the last five years.

Lucy Frazer: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Offensive Weapons: Convictions

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted for being in possession of a (a) firearm and (b) weapon in each of the last three years.

Lucy Frazer: The number of people convicted for being in possession of a (a) firearm and (b) weapon in each of the last three years can be found in the ‘Outcomes by Offence’ tool.https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/707811/outcomes-by-offence-tool-2017.xlsxfilter ‘type of defendant’ and select ‘Person’.For (a), filter ‘Offence’ and select:‘10A Possession of firearms with intent,10B.1 Possession of firearms offences - indictable only,10B.2 Possession of firearms offences - triable either way’.The number of convicted will answer part (a) of the question.For (b), filter ‘Offence group’ and select ‘Possession of weapons’.The number of convicted will answer part (b) of the question.

Prisons: West Midlands

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of trends in the level of violence and self-harm in prisons in the West Midlands.

Rory Stewart: We keep levels of safety at all prison establishments under constant review, using data for assaults, self-harm incidents and self-inflicted deaths, HMIP inspection reports and the outputs of internal assurance reviews of safety, supplemented by ongoing operational intelligence. Published statistics for a range of measures of safety, including data for individual prisons, can be found at:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/safety-in-custody-quarterly-update-to-december-2017. The levels of violence, suicide and self-harm in our prisons are far too high and we are taking urgent action to address these problems. Assaults on our hardworking staff will never be tolerated. We are ensuring that prison officers have the tools they need to do the job, rolling out body-worn cameras, police-style handcuffs and restraints, and trialling PAVA incapacitant spray. Our recruitment drive is vital to ensuring prisons are safe, secure and decent so they can successfully rehabilitate offenders, and 90 per cent of our additional 3,111 prison officers are due to be in post by the summer.

Courts: Coventry

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of court closures on access to justice for people in Coventry.

Lucy Frazer: The people of Coventry are served by two operational courts in the city, Coventry Magistrates’ Court and Coventry Combined Court (Crown and County), providing effective access to justice.There are currently no plans to close courts in Coventry.

Legal Aid Scheme

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department has any plans to ensure that there is a minimum amount of criminal legal aid lawyers in each local authority area.

Lucy Frazer: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Legal Aid Scheme

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the pay and conditions for criminal legal aid lawyers are adequate to encourage more people to enter the profession.

Lucy Frazer: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Offences against Children: Victim Support Schemes

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent discussions he has had with local authorities on the provision of support services for victims of child sexual exploitation; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Argar: Government officials meet with representatives of local authorities to ensure that victims of crime receive effective and joined up support. The Ministry of Justice also works closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, which holds the relationship with local authorities. The Ministry of Justice has responsibility for supporting victims of crime. We want to ensure that all victims of child sexual abuse and exploitation feel they can come forward to report abuse and have access to the support they need. This is why we have allocated around £7.2m in funding to sexual violence support services to provide specialist support for victims of sexual violence, including victims of child sexual abuse and exploitation. We have also allocated Police and Crime Commissioners around £68m in funding to locally deliver or commission support services for victims of crime. £4.7m of this funding has been allocated specifically for services supporting victims of child sexual abuse. This Government has also awarded grant funding to national organisations providing vital services for victims of child sexual abuse and exploitation, including telephone and online counselling. Local authorities receive Government funding to deliver local services in their communities, and it is for them to decide how best to direct their funding in line with local priorities.

Family Proceedings

Anna McMorrin: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps the Government has taken to reform the family justice system to give equal value to the role of the mother and the father.

Lucy Frazer: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Family Proceedings

Anna McMorrin: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 19 October 2017, when the Government plans to publish its Green Paper on family justice.

Lucy Frazer: We need to look across the entire family justice system to make sure it is delivering the best outcomes for children and families, and protecting its most vulnerable users. We are working to consider what further changes are needed and will bring forward our proposals in due course.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Government Departments: Brexit

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, pursuant to the Answer of 29 March 2018 to Question 134319 on Departments: Brexit, what arrangements have been established in his Department to coordinate departments’ exit planning and delivery; and what the size is of that coordinating team.

Mr Robin Walker: Philip Rycroft, through the Department for Exiting the European Union, has responsibility for the overall coordination and strategy for exit. This includes coordination of other government departments’ planning and delivery work - where of course there are hundreds of officials working to deliver a successful Exit from the EU. In particular, the Policy & Delivery Coordination directorate has been established to lead DExEU’s work to coordinate the domestic policy implications of exit across government departments. There are over 100 people working in PDC. However all staff in the Department are dedicated to planning, delivering or supporting the work on EU exit. DExEU has over 650 staff based in the UK plus the expertise of over 120 officials in Brussels, and regular resource reviews have taken place in order to ensure that the Department’s structure remains suitable.

UK Relations With EU

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, pursuant to his Answer of 20 June 2018 to Question 153191 on UK Relations with EU, whether a UK-EU negotiating group representing the culture and sporting sector has been established to discuss future partnership issues with the EU; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Robin Walker: As we set out in our previous answer, to question 153191, we have already published the topics for discussion on the future framework jointly with the EU. This incorporates the economic and security partnerships outlined by the Prime Minister, as well as the institutional framework that will underpin them and other cross-cutting issues, including a cooperative accord on culture and education. In light of the joint publication, we have been having regular discussions with the EU on aspects of our future partnership. We have outlined our positions on a wide range of topics and have continued to publish key documents, which are available on gov.uk, in support of these negotiations.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Local Government Finance: North East

Jim McMahon: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the per cent change in real terms funding has been for each North East council in each year from 2010.

Rishi Sunak: The Department does not publish real terms changes in funding for local authorities. The changes to cash terms in Spending Power are published on the Department’s website at the links below:http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20140505110052/http://www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/1112/spfull1s.xlshttp://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20140505110056/http://www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/1112/spfull2s3.xlshttp://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20140505104701/http://www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/1314/1314SPsuppinfos.xlshttps://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/277395/Spending_Power_2014-15_supporting_information_final_settlement.xlshttps://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/400630/Spending_Power_2015-16_Supporting_Information_FINAL.xlsxhttps://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/679611/Core_Spending_Power_Supporting_Information.xlsxThe North East region will receive an increase in Core Spending Power of 4.4 per cent (£98 million) between 2016-17 to 2019-20.

Rented Housing: Students

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 20 June 2018 to Question 152689 on rented housing: students, if he will list the meetings held between Ministers of his Department and representatives of Unipol during this Parliament to date.

James Brokenshire: There have been no recent meetings between Ministers of the Department and representatives of Unipol.

Rented Housing: Students

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 20 June 2018 to Question 152689 on Rented Housing: Students, what discussions his Ministry has had with Unipol on the timetable for issuing an updated national student accommodation code of practice for educational establishments.

James Brokenshire: The Department is considering how to progress approval of the student code of practice for education establishments in the light of the Hackitt Review. Officials will discuss next steps with Unipol shortly.

Temporary Accommodation: Children

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to reduce the number of children placed in temporary housing.

Nigel Adams: Temporary accommodation provides an important safety net and means that no one has to be without a roof over their heads.We brought the Homelessness Reduction Act into force in April 2018. This is the biggest and most ambitious change to homelessness legislation in decades, focusing on preventing homelessness in the first place, and ensuring more people are getting the help they need.We also replaced DWP’s Temporary Accommodation Management Fee with a Flexible Homelessness Support Grant which local authorities can use more strategically to prevent homelessness and help households find a settled home. This amounts to £615 million over three years from 2017/18.Our new Homelessness Advice and Support Team, drawn from local authorities and the homelessness sector, is providing support to authorities to deliver the Homelessness Reduction Act and effective Homelessness Services. The number of families in B&B accommodation is down by 28 per cent compared to the same time last year. The number of households with children in B&B accommodation for longer than 6 weeks is down by 38 per cent on the same time last year.There are councils who are successfully reducing the number and length of time families are spending in B&B accommodation. For example, the London Borough of Barnet has developed a targeted programme of support to reduce the use of temporary accommodation. From December 2016 to March 2018 it reduced the number of children living in Temporary Accommodation by 11 per cent. We expect areas in similar situations to follow their example.

Local Government Finance: Somerset

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 15 May 2018 to Question 142845 on Social Rented Housing, and the Answer of 15 June 2018 to Question 152763 on Local Government Finance: Somerset, what assessment his Department has made of the ability of Somerset County Council to deliver a consistent quality of service across a range of priorities.

Rishi Sunak: Holding answer received on 06 July 2018



The Department constantly reviews the challenges facing the sector and individual authorities. Local authorities are independent bodies responsible for setting their own budgets, and for the prudent financial planning and management of their resources to deliver the services required to meet local needs. They can receive sector-led support provided by the Local Government Association to address their challenges.

Land: Registration

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps local authorities may take to tackle public safety concerns on unregistered land.

Rishi Sunak: Holding answer received on 06 July 2018



Local authorities have a range of powers to intervene where there is a risk to public saftey.

Housing: Management

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recourse to action residents have in relation to builders who having part-developed a freehold site appoint a management company that unsatisfactorily administers the common parts of that site; and whether there is an equivalent of the Leasehold Advisory Service from which freeholders can seek help.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The Government is committed to promoting fairness and transparency for leaseholders and freeholders and ensuring that consumers are protected from abuse and poor service.There are a number of ways to take action against a poor managing agent. Freeholders can make a formal complaint through their managing agent’s own complaints procedure. A complaint can also be made to one of the Government-recognised redress scheme. By law all property agents are required to belong to one of the following three redress schemes: Ombudsman Services Property, Property Redress Scheme and The Property Ombudsman.To provide additional protections, on 21 December 2017, we set out a package of measures to tackle abuses and unfair practices in the leasehold market. This includes legislation to ensure that freeholders who pay charges for the maintenance of communal areas and facilities on a private or mixed use estate, can access equivalent rights as leaseholders to challenge the reasonableness of service charges.On 1 April, we published the response to our recent call for evidence on protecting consumers in the letting and managing agent market. Proposals include establishing a working group to consider how fees such as service charges should be presented to consumers and to explore the best means to challenge fees which are unjustified.

Housing: Management

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Government is taking steps to prevent (a) builders, (b) management companies appointed by builders and (c) the legal advisers to such individuals charging disproportionately large amounts of money for (i) notice fees and (ii) the provision of draft deeds of covenant to be entered into by purchasers; and if he will make a statement.

Nigel Adams: The Government is committed to promoting fairness and transparency for leaseholders and freeholders and ensuring that consumers are protected from abuse and poor service.On 1 April, we published the response to our call for evidence on protecting consumers in the letting and managing agent market. Proposals include establishing a Working Group to consider how fees such as service charges should be presented to consumers and to explore the best means to challenge fees which are unjustified. We will also ask the Working Group to look into those fees and charges that go beyond service charges, but can impact both leaseholders and freeholders, and consider under what circumstances they are justified, and if they should be capped or banned. This includes the use of restrictive covenants, leasehold restrictions, administration charges and other charges placed on properties.

Local Enterprise Partnerships
: Cambridgeshire

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will publish the 2017-18 accounts of the recently wound-up Greater Cambridgeshire Greater Peterborough Local Enterprise Partnership.

Jake Berry: The Greater Cambridgeshire Greater Peterborough Local Enterprise Partnership was a company limited by guarantee and its accounts are a matter of public record at Companies House.

Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough Enterprise Partnership

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what payments his Department has made to the Greater Cambridgeshire Greater Peterborough Combined Authority to cover the costs and delivery of that authority's adoption of the Local Enterprise Partnership since December 2017.

Jake Berry: Local partners agreed to disband the Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) in December 2017 and that, as of 1 April 2018, the LEP’s functions should transfer to the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Mayoral Combined Authority.My Department has made no payments to the Combined Authority to support its absorption of the LEP. We have provided core funding, as is consistent across all LEPs, so that the local area can continue to fund the executive functions of the LEP through the reforms.

Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough Enterprise Partnership

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will publish a summary of all payments from his Department to the Greater Cambridgeshire Greater Peterborough Local Enterprise Partnership in 2017-18.

Jake Berry: All central government departments must publish details of their spending over £25,000 on a monthly basis. My Department has lowered this threshold to £250. Payments made in 2017-18 to Cambridgeshire County Council, as the accountable body of the Greater Cambridgeshire Greater Peterborough Local Enterprise Partnership, can be found on the Gov.uk website.https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dclg-spending-over-250#historyhttps://www.gov.uk/government/collections/mhclg-departmental-spending-over-250

Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough Enterprise Partnership

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of whether there will be any extra costs to the Greater Cambridgeshire Greater Peterborough Combined Authority as a result of their takeover of the Greater Cambridgeshire Greater Peterborough Local Enterprise Partnership.

Jake Berry: My Department has made no such assessment as this is a matter for the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority.

Caravans: Public Spaces

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to empower local authorities to prohibit sleeping in caravans in public spaces.

Rishi Sunak: Local authorities have a range of powers that enable them to address this issue. A summary of the powers is published on the Government’s website at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dealing-with-illegal-and-unauthorised-encampmentsWe have recently consulted on the effectiveness of powers to deal with unauthorised development and encampments. Now that the consultation has closed, we are carefully considering all responses before deciding what further action to take.

Letting Agents: Fees and Charges

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of how letting agents in England would cover costs currently paid from the fee on tenants in the event that letting agent fees are abolished.

Nigel Adams: The Tenant Fees Bill is not about driving letting agents out of business. Letting agents should be reimbursed for the valuable services they provide but this must be by landlords rather than tenants. It is only fair that the party who contracts the service should pay for the service. We do not expect the full level of tenant fees that are charged currently by letting agents to be passed on to landlords. Currently, there is evidence of excessive charging by letting agents, such as double charging of both landlords and tenants, or charging more than the economic value of services provided. Good letting agents, providing services that represent value for money to landlords, will continue to play an important role in the market. This is what the provisions of the Bill will achieve – landlords will choose the agent that provides the quality of service that they are seeking at a price that they are willing to pay. Government has carried out an impact assessment to accompany the Bill, which is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/tenant-fees-bill#impact-assessment

Letting Agents: Fees and Charges

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merit of placing a cap or upper limit on letting agent fees.

Nigel Adams: The Government does not agree that a cap on fees would be effective as tenants would continue to have very limited ability to negotiate the level of fees. A ban ensures that the party that contacts the service pays for the service, which is an indicator of a fair market. A ban is also easier for tenants to understand and enforce.

Fire and Rescue Services: Cambridgeshire

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Cambridgeshire Regional Fire Control Centre building is being leased out by his Department.

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, on what date the current lease of the Cambridgeshire Regional Fire Control Centre building commenced.

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Cambridgeshire Regional Fire Control Centre is currently being let at a commercial rate.

Jake Berry: The Cambridgeshire Regional Fire Centre building is one of the legacy assets of the terminated FiReControl project. The Department commenced its lease on 1 October 2008 and the building is currently vacant. The Department is in commercial negotiations to sub-let the property.

Temporary Accommodation: North West

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many children are living in temporary accommodation in each local authority in the North West.

Nigel Adams: Temporary accommodation ensures that no child or household are left without a roof over their head and are getting the help they need.MHCLG publishes regular statistics on temporary accommodation, rough sleeping, statutory homelessness and homelessness prevention and relief in England. These are published at a local authority level. The latest statistics can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/homelessness-statistics.

Alcoholic Drinks: Rehabilitation

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the total local authority expenditure on alcohol treatment services in England was in (a) 2014, (b) 2015, (c) 2016 and (d) 2017; and if he will publish that same information by region.

Rishi Sunak: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government hold partial records of the information requested. Spend on alcohol treatment was first recorded as a separate item in 2016-17 (£191,000 for England).MHCLG has not produced statistics at regional level since 2012, as per Ministerial Statement:https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/local-statisticsFigures on local authority expenditure on public health services, are collected on the Revenue Outturn (RO3) form available from:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/local-authority-revenue-expenditure-and-financing-england-2016-to-2017-individual-local-authority-data-outturn

Homelessness: Temporary Accommodation

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 4 July to Question 158161, if he will set out the ways in which new headline figures showing the number of homeless acceptances will be not be comparable with existing statistics published by his Department.

James Brokenshire: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Members: Correspondence

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to ensure that responses to correspondence from hon. Members are provided within the target time.

Jake Berry: MHCLG takes correspondence very seriously. We have made a number of procedural changes during the course of 2018, and these have underpinned a significant, sustained improvement in our performance. We continue to seek and implement ways to ensure that responses are provided within the target time.

Ministry of Defence

Defence Equipment: Procurement

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the total value is of all contracts in US dollars for military equipment purchased by the Ministry of Defence since 23 June 2016; and if he will list (a) those contracts with a value of more than US$10 million, (b) their individual value and (c) the date on which the invoice for each contract was settled.

Guto Bebb: The information is not held in the format requested. Ministry of Defence contracts with US suppliers are generally through a company's UK subsidiary and are priced in sterling. Any conversion would be an inaccurate representation of the contract value.

Defence Nuclear Safety Regulator

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what (a) findings, (b) safety improvement notices and (c) immediate safety requirements were issued by the Defence Nuclear Safety Regulator in each year since 2010; and how many have not been formally closed out.

Guto Bebb: Since 2010 the Defence Nuclear Safety Regulator (DNSR) has issued five safety improvement notices and has not issued any immediate safety requirement notices. Prior to April 2015 the DNSR Annual Assurance Reports, available on GOV.uk, detail the assurance activity conducted by the Regulator. Since this date the reports and contents have been redacted in full, to ensure our capabilities are not compromised. Detailed information on findings for the period specified is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Such detailed information would be subject to security classification that would limit disclosure.

Defence Nuclear Safety Regulator

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the planned publication date is for the next Defence Nuclear Safety Regulator annual assurance report.

Guto Bebb: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Leeds North East (Fabian Hamilton) on 3 July 2018 to Question 157649.



Nuclear Weapons: Safety
(Word Document, 26.38 KB)

Ministry of Defence: Airbus

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the value is of Airbus goods sourced from outside the EU under the Government's defence contract with that company.

Guto Bebb: The Ministry of Defence does not hold information on the contracts delivered by Airbus subsidiaries outside the European Union, nor the source of the goods provided under those arrangements; both are primarily a matter for Airbus.

Air Training Corps: Finance

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on funding for (a) Air Training Corps sites and (b) the Air Training Corps site in Baginton, Coventry.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Ministry of Defence: Disclosure of Information

Ged Killen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has instituted an inquiry into leaked correspondence in the last month; and if he will make a statement.

Gavin Williamson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 5 July 2018 to Question 159554 to the hon. Member for Llanelli (Nia Griffith).



159554 - Military Alliances: Disclosure of Info
(Word Document, 21.98 KB)

NATO: Military Exercises

Douglas Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Royal Navy (i) submarines, (ii) ships and (iii) personnel and (b) RAF (A) aircraft (B) personnel took part in the recent NATO exercise Dynamic Mongoose.

Mark Lancaster: The United Kingdom did not participate in the NATO Exercise DYNAMIC MONGOOSE 2018.

Moorland: Fires

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans to deploy military helicopter assets to support the Fire Service in fighting the moorland fires.

Mark Lancaster: Defence provided Military Aid to Civil Authorities (MACA) at the request of the Home Office as the lead Government Department and on behalf of Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS). From the outset, a range of possible Defence support options were discussed, and as with all major incidents, military liaison officers were engaged at the local level, providing advice and support. Defence provided an RAF Chinook helicopter as part of this support, though GMFRS notified the Ministry of Defence that the planned helicopter support was no longer required before it arrived on scene. Over 100 military personnel from 4th Battalion, the Royal Regiment of Scotland (The Highlanders), deployed for a period of nine days to assist GMFRS. Home Office and GMFRS no longer have a requirement for Military support.

Defence: Procurement

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish each defence procurement exercise his Department has exempted from international competition under Article 346 of the Treaties on the Functioning of the European Union since August 2011.

Guto Bebb: All information and records related to these exemptions are sensitive and classified. The information requested cannot be provided as excessive efforts must be applied by the Ministry of Defence to cleanse sensitive data from these records in order to publish the information openly and therefore information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Royal Fleet Auxiliary

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State’s letter to the Chair of the House of Commons Defence Committee, on the procurement of Fleet Solid Support ships, dated 29 May 2018, what assessment has he made of the compatibility of the Korean Development Bank’s Ocean Value-Up Fund with EU state aid rules.

Guto Bebb: State aid is generally prohibited under the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, apart from under a small number of specific exemptions stipulated by legislation. For state aid to be deemed illegal it must meet clearly defined criteria.The Korean Development Bank's Ocean Value-Up Fund is designed to assist small and medium sized shipping companies in placing orders for new vessels and the purchase of used ones. It is not available to ship construction yards and does not provide support for the construction in South Korean shipyards of vessels procured by third parties.

Royal Fleet Auxiliary

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State’s letter to the Chair of the House of Commons Defence Committee, on the procurement of Fleet Solid Support ships dated 29 May 2018, whether the preservation of industrial capability can be classified to be a national security interest for the purpose of invoking Article 346 exemptions.

Guto Bebb: Preserving industrial capability can be used as a measure to protect a nation's security interests under the Article 346 exemption in certain circumstances. For example, there is a requirement to protect our freedom of action to design, integrate and build Royal Navy warships, as this is critical to national security. All procurement decisions are still subject to value for money considerations.In the case of the Fleet Solid Support ships, the Article 346 exemption does not apply, because, as outlined in the 29 May 2018 letter to the Chair of the House of Commons Defence Committee, the ships are not deemed to be warships and there is no national security interest in limiting the competition to UK companies.

Patrol Craft

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if his Department classifies River-class Offshore Patrol Vessels as warships.

Guto Bebb: The National Shipbuilding Strategy (paragraph 92) defines Royal Navy Warships as destroyers, frigates and aircraft carriers. For the purposes of shipbuilding, all other naval ships are not classified as such.

Royal Fleet Auxiliary

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether a decision to restrict the  competition for the procurement of Fleet Solid Support ships to UK companies would result in compensation costs to non-UK companies that have taken part in the market engagement process.

Guto Bebb: The Fleet Solid Support ships market engagement process was conducted on a 'without commitment' basis, so there are no grounds on which a party could claim compensation.

Veterans: Identity Cards

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Prime Minister's announcement last year of plans to provide 2.5 million former armed forces personnel cards to identify them as veterans (a) what steps have been taken to provide those personnel cards; and whether his Department has set a timeline for when those personnel cards will be issued.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Ministry of Defence is reviewing a range of options to ensure a form of voluntary veterans' identification is made available. We will make a further announcement later this year.

Department for Work and Pensions

Personal Independence Payment

Lesley Laird: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department has taken to proactively (a) contact and (b) advise people affected by the introduction of personal independence payment; and what advice her Department provides to those people.

Sarah Newton: The Department is committed to ensuring that Disability Living Allowance (DLA) claimants who will be invited to claim Personal Independence Payment (PIP) are made aware of this. Since 2014, the annual DLA uprating notice sent to current DLA claimants has contained information about PIP and that DWP will write to them to invite them to claim PIP when their DLA is due to end.The Department ran a communications campaign about DLA ending between November 2015 and April 2016. This included digital advertising and the distribution of leaflets by community organisations. The ‘DLA is ending’ leaflet is still available.DWP continues to work closely with organisations and national stakeholder forums to raise awareness and understanding of PIP, and improve the information we provide. Information about PIP is available on the GOV.UK and on all the main disability organisations’ websites. We also update professional bodies and associations covering hospitals, GP surgeries and local authorities on PIP changes.

Social Security Benefits: Offenders

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many female offenders were sanctioned for welfare claims within three months of release in each year from 2010.

Alok Sharma: The information requested is not available. Sanctions are only ever used as a last resort, and when considering whether a sanction is appropriate, a Decision Maker will take all the claimant’s individual circumstances and any evidence of good cause into account before deciding whether a sanction is warranted.

Personal Independence Payment

Paul Girvan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average cost is to her Department of an application for personal independence payment by stage of application.

Sarah Newton: The average cost to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) of an application for Personal Independence Payment for 2016/17 is £407.61. This cost is for the end to end position of a Claim for Personal Independence Payment i.e. the customer journey from initial contact to a decision being made.We are not able to split the figure above by all of the stages within the Claim for Personal Independence Claim process but it can be split into the following elements: For the DWP Operational stages as a whole, the average unit cost is £187.40 For the Contracted Assessment element the average unit cost is £220.21 We are unable to provide any further breakdown by stage of application as the information is not available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Universal Credit

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of advance payments that have been applied for as a result of the roll-out of universal credit.

Alok Sharma: Holding answer received on 06 July 2018



Applications for a Universal Credit advance can be made in a number of ways: in person, by telephone and also online. To identify and collate the total number of applications made would incur disproportionate cost.Advances are available to all Universal Credit claimants who need them as part of a package of support to manage their transition to Universal Credit. Also, as promised last November, following the Autumn Budget, we have now introduced new functionality for advances to be claimed through a claimant’s online Universal Credit account.

Pension Credit

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment the Government has made of the potential merits of increasing the pension credit threshold.

Guy Opperman: Pension Credit is an income related benefit that provides a top up to a guaranteed minimum income (known as the Standard Minimum Guarantee) of £163.00 weekly for a single pensioner and £248.80 for couples. Extra amounts may be payable in respect of severe disability, caring or certain housing costs. There is a legal requirement to uprate the Standard Minimum Guarantee each year by at least average earnings. This year (from April 2018) the Standard Minimum Guarantee was increased by more than earnings in order to match the cash increase in the full rate of the basic State Pension.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Water Companies

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing the water sector back into public ownership.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government’s view is that private ownership, backed by strong, independent regulation is the optimum way to meet the ongoing needs of water customers and the environment. On 1 March, the Secretary of State set out the need for water companies to respond to public concerns over pay and governance: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/a-water-industry-that-works-for-everyone That is why the Government fully supports Ofwat’s changes to the upcoming price review process to make water companies work as diligently for customers as for their shareholders. These reforms require water companies to share profits with customers, make dividend payments more transparent and ensure that executive pay is linked to customer service. https://www.ofwat.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Putting-the-sector-back-in-balance-consultation-on-proposals-for-PR19-business-plans.pdf.

Angling: Sussex

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the value of recreational sea angling to the Sussex economy.

George Eustice: Defra has not estimated the value of recreational sea angling to the Sussex economy. However, Defra’s ‘Sea Angling 2012’ research found that sea anglers resident in England spent £1.23 billion on the sport (it is not possible to provide robust figures by county).

Fishing Vessels

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what limits his Department recommends for proximity to shore of near-shore pair trawlers.

George Eustice: Operational advice issued regarding the proximity of fishing activity, including pair-trawling, is often judged on a case by case basis and is dependent on local fishing patterns and behaviours. In addition to this there are also specific restrictions in place which limit pair-trawling in English waters. For instance, there is a prohibition on certain types of pair-trawling within 12 nautical miles of the South West of England, and the Eastern IFCA operates a byelaw that prohibits trawling from 0-3 nautical miles throughout most of the district.

Home Office

Immigrants: Detainees

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether records are kept on the religion of people detained in immigration removal centres; and if she will make a statement.

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people detained in immigration removal centres have identified as (a) Christian, (b) Sikh, (c) Muslim, (d) Jewish, (e) Hindu and (f) atheist in each of the last five years.

Caroline Nokes: Under Rule 21 of the Detention Centre Rules 2001, if detainees on admission to an immigration removal centre (IRC) wish to declare that they belong to a particular religion, that information must be recorded. This information is recorded by the IRC service providers on their own internal detainee management systems and is used to inform the religious provision available at the IRC.Due to the differing recording methods in place at each of the individual centres information on the religion of people detained in IRCs in each of the last five years could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Cannabis: Medical Treatments

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what representations he has received from pharmaceutical companies on the use of medicinal cannabis in the last two years; and if he will publish the information his Department holds on the position of those companies on whether cannabis and cannabis-based medicinal products should be rescheduled under the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001.

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make funding available for multi-centre trials on the medicinal and therapeutic benefits of (a) cannabis and (b) cannabis-based products.

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether part one of the Government’s two-part review of the scheduling of cannabis will consider evidence from overseas, including Germany, of the medicinal and therapeutic benefits of cannabis and cannabis-based products.

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what input the Department of Health and Social Care will have into the Government’s two-part review of the scheduling of cannabis.

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions his Department has had with representatives of the medicinal cannabis industry on the medicinal and therapeutic benefits of cannabis and cannabis-based medicinal products.

Mr Nick Hurd: As I announced on 19 June, the Government is undertaking a two-phase review looking at the scheduling of cannabis. Part one of the review considered international evidence for the medicinal and therapeutic benefits of cannabis and cannabis based medicinal products. Professor Dame Sally Davies, who also serves as the Chief Medical Advisor to the Government and Chief Medical Officer for England, took this forward independently.This part of the review is now complete and the report was published on 3 July. Also on 3 July, the Home Secretary commissioned the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) to undertake part two of the Review. Supported by the Home Office and the Department of Health and Social Care, the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs will consider the appropriate schedule for cannabis related products, based on the balance of harms and public health requirements. The ACMD will not reassess the evidence issued by Professor Dame Sally Davies.I can confirm that my department has not received any representations from pharmaceutical companies on the use of medicinal cannabis in the last two years. In the last 12 months, the Home Office has discussed the potential use of Epidiolex as an alternative option for treatment with the manufacturer, GW Pharmaceuticals.Given the Home Office’s role leading on regulatory governance it is not for the department to provide funding for multi-centre trials on the medicinal and therapeutic benefits of cannabis and cannabis-based products.

Visas: Maladministration

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information his Department holds on the number of errors made in the processing of visas that have resulted in a delay in the issue of visas in each visa application centre.

Caroline Nokes: The information requested is not included in statistics published by the Home Office. When we are informed of errors we work promptly to rectify them.

Arts: Visas

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will take steps as part of the negotiations for the UK leaving the EU to seek the creation of a visa system between the UK and EU countries to meet the needs of the creative sector.

Caroline Nokes: The Government is considering a range of options for the future immigration system. We will​ ​build​ ​a​ ​comprehensive​ ​picture​ ​of​ ​the​ ​needs​ ​and​ ​interests​ ​of​ ​all​ ​parts​ ​of​ ​the​ ​UK, including​ ​different​ ​sectors,​ ​businesses​ ​and​ ​communities,​ ​and​ ​look​ ​to​ ​develop​ ​a system​ ​that​ ​works​ ​for​ ​all.​We will make decisions on the future immigration system based on evidence and engagement. That is why we have asked the independent Migration Advisory Committee to advise on the economic and social impacts of the UK’s exit from the EU. When building the new system, various aspects including the creative sector will be taken into account, to ensure the future immigration system works for sectors.We will set out proposals later this year.

Proceeds of Crime

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the value was of criminal assets seized by the police in the last 12 months.

Mr Ben Wallace: The figures for the recovery of criminal assets are set out in the Asset Recovery Statistical Bulletin, and shows the total value of proceeds of crime collected each financial year between 2012 - 2017 using confiscation and cash forfeiture powers. The Bulletin can be found at:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/asset-recovery-statistical-bulletin-financial-years-ending-2012-to-2017The Government has made a commitment to publish the next version of the Statistical Bulletin on 13 September 2018.

Advisory Services: EU Grants and Loans

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the value was of EU funding allocated for the provision in the UK of specialist (a) women’s services, (b) services to support victims and survivors of child abuse and (c) services relating to sexual and domestic violence in the financial year 2017-2018.

Victoria Atkins: Over this spending review period, we are providing £100m of dedicated funding to tackle Violence Against Women and Girls.EU funding is provided to projects themselves as opposed to countries or government departments. Information requested which relates to projects which have secured funding can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/justice/grants1/closed-calls/index_en.htm.As part of wider Brexit work being taken forward, the Department for Exiting the European Union (DExEU) is leading a cross-Government policy coordination team in order to examine funding issues and gauge views across Government on the preferred negotiations approach to EU funding programmes.

Immigration: Domestic Violence

Joanna Cherry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information his Department holds on the number of people who have received leave to remain (a) under the destitution domestic violence concession and (b) as a victim of domestic violence under paragraph 289B of the Immigration Rules in each of the last three years.

Caroline Nokes: The published statistics relating to individuals granted leave to remain under the destitution domestic violence concession and Indefinite Leave to Remain in the United Kingdom as a victim of domestic violence are recorded together as part of published Migration Statistics and can be located via the link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release

Immigration: Domestic Violence

Joanna Cherry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of providing a period of respite for victims of domestic abuse to seek legal advice before deciding whether to access the destitution domestic violence concession; and if he will make a statement.

Victoria Atkins: This Government remains committed to tackling incidents of domestic abuse.We have consulted on what more can be done to protect domestic abuse victims through a 12-week public consultation exercise that closed on 31 May.We are currently analysing the 3,200 plus responses received and will carefully consider what future courses of action are necessary. The existing Destitute Domestic Violence Concession (DDVC) provides eligible individuals with a period of three months’ leave outside the immigration rules, allowing them to seek legal advice or other support.

British Nationality: Applications

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what his Department's definition of good character is when considering the citizenship applications of children over 10 years old.

Caroline Nokes: The good character test for British citizenship applies to those aged 10 and over, in line with the age of criminal responsibility. It reflects the value and prestige attached to acquiring British citizenship.A person will not normally be considered to be of good character if certain circumstances apply. These include but are not limited to the following situations: they have not respected or are not prepared to abide by the lawthey have been involved in or associated with crimes against humanity such as war crimes or genocidetheir activities were notorious and cast serious doubt on their standing in the local communitythey had been deliberately dishonest or deceptive in their dealings with the UK Governmentthey have assisted in the evasion of immigration controlthey have previously been deprived of British citizenship

British Nationality: Applications

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the reasons are for the disparity between the application cost and the administration cost of applications for child citizenship.

Caroline Nokes: The Home Office sets fees at a level that helps provide resources necessary to operate the Border, Immigration and Citizenship (BIC) system.The Immigration Act 2014 is the primary legislation which gives them statutory powers to set fees. The relevant sections of the Act relating to fees are 68 to 70 which can be found on pages 58 to 61 of the following link:http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2014/22/pdfs/ukpga_20140022_en.pdfSection 68(9) states:(9) In setting the amount of any fee, or rate or other factor, in fees regulations, the Secretary of State may have regard only to:-(a) the costs of exercising the function;(b) benefits that the Secretary of State thinks are likely to accrue to any person in connection with the exercise of the function;(c) the costs of exercising any other function in connection with immigration or nationality;(d) the promotion of economic growth;(e) fees charged by or on behalf of governments of other countries in respect of comparable functions; and(f) any international agreementWe set fees to reflect the wider benefits an individual will receive from a successful application and do not limit fees to the cost of processing an application also. This was a fundamental principle underpinning the fees measures in the Immigration Act 2014, as debated and approved by Parliament.Working within strict financial limits agreed with HM Treasury and Parliament, application fees are set by taking into account general policy objectives to ensure that fees are fair to customers, and that the Home Office can continue to offer a good level of service.To ensure that the system is fair and equitable, the Home office believe it is reasonable that those who use and benefit directly from the BIC system make an appropriate contribution towards meeting the associated costs.Application fees have increased in recent years to help support the HomeOffice ambition to reduce the overall level of funding that comes from general taxation, by reducing costs and increasing the proportion which is funded by income generated from fees, therefore reducing the burden on the UK taxpayer.The principle of charging at above cost for immigration and nationality fees was first approved by Parliament in 2004.The additional income from above cost fees is used to help fund and maintain effective wider immigration system functions, and to ensure the Home Office can set some fees at below cost, where this supports the UK economy (Short-term visit visas), or is otherwise required by international agreement (EEA fees). And it also enables the Department to waive fees in certain individual circumstances, for example where people are destitute and need to access their Human Rights, for example their right to a family life.

Hemp: Licensing

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will review the licence provisions to enable people to grow hemp for personal (a) food and (b) clothing use.

Mr Nick Hurd: There are currently no plans to review the policy which gives rise to the licensing regime for cannabis cultivation.The long-standing ‘industrial hemp’ licensing regime exists to enable growers- large or small- to cultivate low THC varieties of cannabis for use of the seed or fibre in clothing or culinary applications. Cultivation solely for ‘personal use’ would not be permitted within this policy.

Police: Females

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many female police officers have been recruited in each of the last three years.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office collects and publishes data on the number of police officers who join the police workforce during the financial year and are based on full-time equivalents. These data are published in the ‘Police workforce, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin.Data on the number of police officers who joined the police workforce in England and Wales for the years 2006/07 to 2016/17 can be found in the accompanying Joiners Open Data Tables, available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-workforce-open-data-tablesThese data are broken down by Police Force Area, gender, ethnicity and type of joiner.The latest figures are for the year to 31 March 2017. The next edition of the ‘Police workforce, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin representing the workforce as at 31 March 2018 is due to be published on 19th July 2018.

Immigration: Enforcement

Mr David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 5 June 2018 to Question 148604 on Immigration: Enforcement, what estimate he has made of the cost of providing information on the number of (a) Members of Parliament and (b) staff working for Members of Parliament that communicated on immigration enforcement hotlines during 2017; and which political parties they belonged to.

Caroline Nokes: We are now able to obtain the information within the cost limit. Of the 73 referrals from MPs received in 2017 34 were received from Conservative members, 32 from Labour, 1 from the Democratic Unionist Party and 1 from the Liberal Democrats. After closer scrutiny five reports were deemed not to have come from Members of Parliament.

British Nationality: Ethnic Groups

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many black and minority ethnic young people as defined by the British Nationality Act 1981 have been refused citizenship due to being judged to be not of good character in each year since December 2012.

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many young people under local authority care as defined by the (a) British Nationality Act 1981 and (b) Children Act 1989 have been refused citizenship due to being judged to be not of good character in each year since December 2012.

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the British Nationality Act 1981, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that the guidance it issues on good character for young persons meets its statutory responsibilities in relation to (a) safeguarding and (b) making the best interests of the child a primary consideration in decisions; and if he will make statement.

Caroline Nokes: The good character test for British citizenship applies to those aged 10 and over, in line with the age of criminal responsibility. Decisions on citizenship applications from minors are made taking into account the Home Office’s statutory obligations under Section 55 of the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009 to have due regard to the best interests of the child.Guidance for caseworkers considering applications for British citizenship is publicly available on Gov.uk. This is in the process of being updated to clarify a number of issues, including application of the good character requirement for young persons.Figures relating to citizenship applications, including decisions to refuse where the applicant is found to not be of good character, are included in the latest Home Office quarterly migration statistics published on 24 May and available on Gov.uk.

Undocumented Workers: Arrests

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 3 July 2018 to Question 157125 on Undocumented Workers, how many people have been arrested for the offence of illegal working since the introduction of that offence.

Caroline Nokes: The information requested is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Scotland Office

Scotland Office: Staff

Lesley Laird: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many (a) payroll and (b) non-payroll staff are employed in his Department for the Private Office Group.

David Mundell: I refer the hon Member to the answer given on 5 July 2018 (UIN 159706 and 159710).

Brexit: Scotland

Lesley Laird: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many times he has officially met the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union to discuss the UK leaving the EU and its implications for Scotland; and when those meetings took place.

David Mundell: I meet with the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union on a regular basis to discuss a wide range of issues including EU Exit.

Brexit: Scotland

Lesley Laird: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many times he has officially met the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster to discuss the UK leaving the EU and its implications for Scotland; and when those meetings took place.

David Mundell: I meet with the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster on a regular basis to discuss a wide range of issues, including EU Exit.

Brexit: Scotland

Lesley Laird: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many times he has officially met the Scottish Government’s Cabinet Secretary for Government Business and Constitutional Relations to discuss the UK leaving the EU and its implications for Scotland; and when those meetings took place.

David Mundell: I have regular meetings and discussions with the Scottish Government’s Cabinet Secretary for Government Business and Constitutional Relations to discuss a wide range of subjects including EU Exit and its implications for Scotland.

Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement: Scotland

Lesley Laird: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many times he has officially met the Secretary of State for Trade to discuss the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement and its implications for Scotland.

David Mundell: I meet with the Secretary of State for Trade on a regular basis to discuss a wide range of issues including international trade and trade agreements and their implications for Scotland.

Cabinet Office

Government Communication Service: United Arab Emirates

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the scope is of the recently signed memorandum of understanding on communications between the Government Communication Service and the Government of Dubai.

Oliver Dowden: The scope of memorandum of understanding on government communication includes sharing and publishing best practice and case studies, assessing the impact of technology, evaluating government communication and hosting a joint conference.

Government Communication Service: United Arab Emirates

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether UK civil servants will be seconded to the Government of Dubai as part of the memorandum of understanding on communications between that Government and the Government Communication Service.

Chloe Smith: No UK civil servants will be seconded to the Government of Dubai as part of the memorandum of understanding on government communication.

Civil Service

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many events the Civil Service Alumni Network has hosted since 2016.

Oliver Dowden: Civil Service Alumni has hosted eleven events for members since its launch in March 2016.

Civil Service

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, who sits on the steering group for the Civil Service Alumni Network.

Oliver Dowden: The Civil Service Alumni Steering Group was established in April 2017. The role of the Civil Service Alumni Steering Group (the “Alumni Steering Group”) is to provide advice and guidance on the effective running of the Civil Service Alumni network. Membership of the Alumni Steering Group comprises of existing civil servants and members of the Alumni Network.

Government Departments: Contracts

Hugh Gaffney: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent assessment he has made of the capacity of strategic suppliers to fulfil their Government contracts.

Oliver Dowden: Contracting Authorities assess the performance of strategic suppliers as a regular part of contract management. In accordance with the published Cabinet Office Strategic Supplier Risk Management (SSRM) policy, the Commercial Relationships Board (CRB) meets regularly to monitor overall performance and assess risk ratings for strategic suppliers.

Ministers and Senior Civil Servants: Mobile Phones

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the National Cyber Security Centre has made an assessment of the potential risk to the security of (a) Ministers and (b) senior civil servants of having voice recognition software enabled on mobile phones; what guidance his Department has issued on the use of voice recognition software; and what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on cyber security; and if he will make a statement.

Mr David Lidington: The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) offers access to the best cyber security advice and support to help protect information and prevent cyber attacks from all possible threats. The NCSC issues a range of freely available guidance on its website available at: at https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/guidance/eud-security-guidance-ios-10

Treasury

Midland Metropolitan Hospital: Repairs and Maintenance

John Spellar: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions officials of his Department have had with officials of the Department of Health on the restart of work on the Midland Metropolitan Hospital.

Elizabeth Truss: We are committed to ensuring the new hospital is built as quickly as possible on the best terms for taxpayers. Work is being led by DHSC and meetings and discussions are held between HMT and DHSC on a regular basis.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Data Protection: EU Law

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he has held discussions with the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union on his policy priorities after the UK leaves the EU in relation to (a) the requirement of the General Data Protection Regulation that children merit specific protection and (b) the regulation's other requirements; and if he will make a statement.

Margot James: Ministers from DCMS and DExEU have held regular discussions about departmental policy priorities, including with respect to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), as the UK leaves the EU.The EU and the UK both have an ambition to achieve high data protection standards globally. The UK demonstrated this commitment with the successful passage of the new Data Protection Act 2018, which implements and transposes the GDPR and Law Enforcement Directive respectively in UK law.The Act received Royal Assent on 23 May. It further strengthens UK data protection standards, ensuring they are fit for the modern age, and implements in full the EU’s new data protection framework in UK domestic law. Our data protection laws will therefore be fully aligned with the EU’s at our point of exit.In May 2018 the government published a presentation setting out this position. The presentation is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/framework-for-the-uk-eu-partnership-data-protection.The government recognises children need particular protection when their personal data is collected and processed as they may be less aware of the risks involved. The GDPR offers clear protection of children’s privacy and privacy notices must be written in a way that children are able to understand. Organisations that process children’s data must ensure that they use a data protection by design and default approach.

Data Protection: EU Law

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether an assessment will be made of the extent to which Government database processes meet the General Data Protection Regulation requirement of data protection by design and default; and if he will make a statement.

Margot James: Government takes the protection of personal data and the right to privacy extremely seriously, and we are determined to lead the way and set the gold standard for data protection. As part of our preparations, we have been working closely with the Information Commissioner’s Office and departments to support compliance preparations across government. Each department, as a data controller, is responsible for its own compliance with the new data protection law, including the requirement under Article 25 GDPR to implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to ensure data protection by design and default.

Dormant Assets Commission

Mrs Kemi Badenoch: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what progress has been made on the implementation of the report, Tackling dormant assets: recommendations to benefit investors and society published by the Independent Dormant Assets Commission in March 2017.

Tracey Crouch: The Government published its response to the Dormant Assets Commission’s report in February 2018. In June, Ministers announced four senior industry champions, who will spearhead the expansion of the current dormant assets scheme, with the support of government, to include a wider set of financial assets across the financial services sector. The champions will report to Ministers on an implementation plan for their respective sectors in due course.

Social Media: Regulation

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he plans to make an assessment of the effectiveness of the German Netzwerkdurchsetzungsgesetz law when formulating his own policy on the regulation of social media; and if he will make a statement.

Margot James: We are aware of the measures brought in by the German Government. We will watch the outcomes of the implementation of this legislation closely, ahead of publication of a White Paper outlining Government's plans to bring in legislation covering the full range of online harms.

Social Media: Harassment

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions he had had with social media providers on (a) misogynistic, (b) racist and (c) homophobic or transphobic online abuse; and what steps he is taking to tackle such abuse.

Margot James: Ministers and officials have regular meetings and discussions with social media companies on a range of issues including online abuse. Details of ministerial meetings are published quarterly on the Gov.uk website. The law does not differentiate between criminal offences committed on social media or anywhere else - it is the action that is illegal. What is illegal offline, is illegal online and we have also been clear that we expect social media companies to respond quickly to incidents of abusive behaviour on their networks.

Internet: Harassment

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he has had relating to discussions with the Secretary of State for Justice on the legal framework relating to internet trolling; and whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing legislative proposals to tackle such activity.

Margot James: Ministers have regular meetings with Ministerial colleagues on a wide range of issues, including internet trolling. Details of ministerial meetings are published quarterly on the Gov.uk website. The protection of children and young people from online risks remains one of this Government's top priorities. As part of its work to make the UK the safest place in the world to be online, the Government published the Internet Safety Strategy Green Paper in October 2017 and published its consultation response in May this year. The consultation response confirmed that the Government will publish a White Paper as a precursor to bringing forward online safety legislation that will cover the full range of online harms. Potential areas for legislation include a social media code of practice and transparency reporting, which will help us understand the extent of online harms and how effectively companies are tackling breaches in their terms and conditions.

Internet: Harassment

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on support for children who are the victims of internet trolling; and if he will make a statement.

Margot James: Ministers from DCMS have regular meetings with Ministerial colleagues on a wide range of issues, including internet trolling. Details of ministerial meetings are published quarterly on the Gov.uk website.

Local Government: Broadcasting

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans he has to review the ten-year commitment for the BBC to pay for the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.

Margot James: The Government has no plans to review the BBC's commitment to fund and administer the Local Democracy Reporting scheme, which forms part of the BBC Royal Charter. The impact of the scheme may be considered by Dame Frances Cairncross as part of the review she is carrying out on behalf of the government into the sustainability of high-quality journalism in the UK.

Public Libraries: West Midlands

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on funding for public libraries in (a) Coventry and (b) the West Midlands; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Ellis: Local authorities in England have a statutory duty to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service. Local authorities currently receive their funding from a number of sources, including grants from central government, council tax and other locally generated fees and charges for services. It is for individual local authorities to decide how to use their funds, including how best to provide a public library service that meets local needs within available resources. In 2016/17 Coventry City Council made a net investment of £4.7m in its library service, while across the West Midlands the net investment in public libraries by local authorities was £74.5 million. DCMS will continue to work across central and local government to encourage investment in libraries to ensure that they continue to support delivery of local and national priorities and needs.

Building Connections Fund

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether the funding from the Building Connections Fund will be allocated in tranches between July 2018 and December 2020; and whether there is a closing date for applications for that funding in the first tranche.

Tracey Crouch: The £11m Building Connections Fund will launch later this month. Details on how to apply and the closing date for applications will be advertised on Gov.uk. Information on the announcement of the fund can be found on the Gov.Uk website via https://www.gov.uk/government/news/20-million-investment-to-help-tackle-loneliness

Women and Equalities

Paternity Leave

Hugh Gaffney: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether the Government is taking steps to give fathers (a) longer and (b) better-paid paternity leave.

Victoria Atkins: We know that helping parents to share care is good for parents and children, particularly in the crucial early months of their child’s life.The Shared Parental Leave and Pay schemes enable fathers and partners to be their child’s main carer if this is best for the family. Qualifying working couples can share up to 50 weeks of leave and up to 37 weeks of pay. From February to April 2018, the Government ran a joint £1.5m campaign to promote Shared Parental Leave.As part of the evaluation of Shared Parental Leave and Pay we are collecting information on the take up of paternity benefits, including survey data on the take up of paternity leave and pay, which will inform the development of policy in this area.

Access to Elected Office for Disabled People Fund

Stephen Lloyd: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, with reference to the Written Statement of 17 May 2018, Access to Elected Office for Disabled People, HCWS695, whether a Deaf and Disabled People's Organisation or an alliance of Deaf and Disabled People's Organisations will be appointed to administer the funds announced to support disabled candidates wishing to stand in the local elections in May 2019.

Stephen Lloyd: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps she is taking to ensure that deaf and disabled people are able to stand for election and compete with other candidates on a level playing field irrespective of their chances of winning.

Victoria Atkins: The Government believes that political parties have the prime responsibility for supporting their disabled candidates. There will be ways that the Government can help, which is why the Minister for Women and Equalities announced that the Government Equalities Office will, with others, undertake a programme of work in this area. Within 12 months, we hope to have political parties offering and advertising support, as well as solutions to help independent candidates. The funding of up to £250,000 that the Minister for Women and Equalities announced is intended to provide support for disabled candidates in the interim, while that programme of work is on-going. We are working on what the interim funding will cover and how it will be delivered. Further details will be announced in due course.

Access to Elected Office for Disabled People Fund

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, pursuant to the Answers of 2 July 2018 to Questions 158205 and 158206, on Access to Elected Office Fund, how she plans to promote the existence of the £250,000 of new funding announced on 17 May 2018; and such planned promotion is expected to start.

Victoria Atkins: GEO is working on what the interim funding will cover and how it will be delivered. The Minister for Women and Equalities is keen that the delivery model and the communications around it help reinforce that political parties have the prime responsibility for supporting their disabled candidates. Further details will be announced in due course.

LGBT People

Stewart Malcolm McDonald: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether she has held discussions with Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ministers on appointing an LGBT special envoy as part of the Government's LGBT Action Plan 2018: Improving the lives of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender people; and if she will make a statement.

Victoria Atkins: The promotion and protection of LGBT rights is a UK priority. We work to promote tolerance and non-discrimination against LGBT people and to address discriminatory laws, in particular those that criminalise same sex relations. My Ministerial colleagues and I, and every one of our Ambassadors and High Commissioners worldwide act as envoys on this issue. We consider that it is more effective to promote the rights of LGBT people as part of a broader approach to equality and non-discrimination, and through the regular engagement of FCO Ministers and officials at our Embassies and High Commissions overseas. We have no current plans to appoint a Special Envoy to work exclusively on LGBT rights. We announced in the action plan published recently, that we will continue to promote LGBT rights internationally through our overseas missions and through international organisations, including the UN, European institutions and the Commonwealth. We also provide funding to promote LGBT equality. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office Magna Carta Fund for Human Rights and Democracy has committed £1.1 million to support LGBT rights projects worldwide in 2018 and 2019, and the Department for International Development will provide up to £12 million over four years, from 2018 to 2022, for a consortium of organisations to work together to promote LGBT inclusion.

Gender Recognition

Kate Hollern: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps the Government is taking to (a) review the Gender Recognition Act 2004 and (b) de-medicalise the process of applying for a gender recognition certificate.

Victoria Atkins: We have recently published the consultation on Gender Recognition Act 2004. The consultation will run for sixteen weeks, after which we will review the Act based on the responses we receive and set out the Government response to the consultation findings. The consultation asks respondents their views on the current requirements for obtaining a Gender Recognition Certificate, among which are a gender dysphoria diagnosis and a medical report detailing any gender-affirming medical treatment. Our review of these medical requirements is part of our response to the consultation findings.

LGBT People: Surveys

Ged Killen: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, if the Government will produce a reanalysis of the data collected in the National LGBT Survey to provide a regional breakdown of the responses to each question.

Victoria Atkins: In line with the Government’s approach to open data, we will explore how best to make as much of the national LGBT survey data available as possible. We will not share or publish any data from which individuals can be identified, but we will look to publish more aggregate-level, anonymous data which will be of use to the public at large. We will be looking to publish more of the data later in the year, and as part of this release, we will look to provide regional breakdowns.

LGBT People: Surveys

Ged Killen: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether the Government plans to make the anonymised raw data from the National LGBT Survey publically available.

Victoria Atkins: In line with the Government’s approach to open data, we will explore how best to make as much of the national LGBT survey data available as possible. We will not share or publish any data from which individuals can be identified, but we will look to publish more aggregate-level, anonymous data which will be of use to the public at large.